ZOIDS: The Custom King
by drewbie
Summary: Pimp my zoid and I'll kick your arse. That is the motto of runaway mechanic Jhese. Join the ride as Jhese, his team and his partner gripe, argue and generally clown their way through the zoid competitions.
1. Chapter 1

ZOIDS

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

**Chapter 1**

Jhese rubbed his chin.

At only fourteen Jhese was the best bounty hunter who didn't use a zoid, actually he was the only one without a zoid. Instead he used a motor-cycle.

As a runaway Jhese had a home, but his father had died in the zoid wars and his mother had sold his zoid to buy food, even when Jhese had asked to pilot it against wild zoids for a fee his mother had refused, she didn't want him to die like his father.

So Jhese ran away, he believed his mother would be able to live easier without him, but life away from home proved incredibly difficult, finally he found a place to stay in the hanger of a kindly old aircraft mechanic, the guy had no zoids and was hopeless as a pilot, but as a mechanic he was untouchable.

Jhese earned his keep by keeping the house and hanger in reasonable order and learned heaps from watching the old man work on zoids and planes alike, when the old man got dotty he began to leave the work more and more to Jhese but when the war broke out all the pilots left and work dried up. The old mechanic had been invited to live with some friends in the next city but on his way over the bus he was riding was attacked by wild molgas; all aboard the bus were killed in the attack. In accordance with the old mechanics will everything now belonged to Jhese. But with no work coming in, Jhese knew if he didn't find an income soon he would have nothing.

Jhese took up bounty hunting, not the type that killed people but the type that exterminated wild zoids for a fee. With all the warriors gone the wild zoid population had exploded and younger people had "borrowed" their older bothers or father's civilian

Zoids and gathered into small hunting forces.

Having no zoid that he could borrow and a score to settle Jhese had armed a motor-cycle with a pair of gattling guns and joined a small band of three other hunters called the "Motley Krew" as they were as different in personality as their zoids were in appearance.

Cyrus the leader: a tall but young looking boy of sixteen years old, he wore military pants, a dark blue denim jacket over a bright red shirt with the words "trust me" printed in black, he had been sent away from the enlistment line because he didn't look eighteen. Pilot of a pteras.

Sixteen year old Kathleen "Kat" a wild tomboy, with red hair and a violent temper, she wanted the frontline but was offered a job as a nurse, Kat had borrowed one of the injured soldiers zoids and been sent home with an ace to her name. She now pilots an attack kat.

David, a thirteen year old was the long range assault specialist used a command wolf A.C. whose long range cannon had spent most of its life as a mounting for a long range camera. The camera had been left on the 'wolf by David as a memento of his deceased father and because he believed that it helped him aim his deathly accurate shots.

Jhese had been ribbed plenty about his bike, but after proving himself with his daredevil strafing runs the teasing had subsided a little.

Now he sat lost in concentration as he puzzled with the idea of adding the thrusters from a zabat that Cyrus had shot down earlier that week to his motor-cycle. _It would have to point down otherwise he would lose all control of the bike as it attempted to fly… maybe he should upgrade the suspension to take the ext-_

"JHESE!"

Jhese looked up to see David walking over to him

"Cyrus has just landed us a new gig in the forests near Mahabi town. He says that wild hell runners are attacking the edges of town. The loggers are trying to hold them off with their spinosappas but they need help, so they've hired us and the 'wolf pack".

Jhese gunned the engine and the bike leaped forward towards the hell runners; he had never seen so many, hell runners usually didn't run in packs but there had to be at least twenty of them, this gig would pay large.

Jhese's job in the crew was to act as a distraction to the wild zoids firing on them when they pinned down one of his team mates, the bike couldn't carry enough punch to fell a zoid without wasting large amounts of ammunition, and Kat was usually the one in need of help as Cyrus was airborne and David a good mile from the action.

David was in trouble now.

Three hell runners had broken from the pack and headed out to where David was choosing targets; although not bad at close range combat it wasn't David's strong point. Three was simply too much for one command wolf.

At three hundred yards Jhese opened fire spraying the hell runners with a healthy dose of lead and steel, they turned away from David, a big mistake two went down under the 'wolfs claws and teeth, the third made a break and was shot down at point blank by the 'wolfs cannon.

Jhese returned to the fray to find Kat had teamed up with three of the four wolf pack members to herd the last of the hell runners away from the town, while a fourth provided cover fire from a cliff four hundred yards north of David.

The battle was over, five command wolves, four spinosappas, a pteras, an attack kat and a kid on a motorbike had just beaten off thirty five hell runners. Not that there hadn't been casualties Jhese's bike had been scraped along the side and was now losing power, and one of the wolf pack zoids had lost a leg but no human injuries and a large pile of junk parts that Jhese could fix and sell or scrap for cash.

As the bike putted to a halt Jhese saw the problem a gash on the fuel tank had slowly dribbled fuel out the side. That would cost… cost? He was lucky he hadn't been blown to pieces.

Ah well, the bike and guns had only cost him two grand all up but even the smallest weakest zoid would cost at least three grand more than that.

David came up towing the trailer that Jhese had made from the wheels and frame of a molga unit, the command wolf easily hauled it when it was full, but it had an adaptation to hitch up the attack kat for easier hauling, and Jhese started throwing bits of hell runner that he considered usable into the hull, as an afterthought he also loaded the bike in and climbed in after it "_I aught to charge you freight you bum_" came David's voice over the bikes radio, Jhese pressed the button to reply "_that would mean the end of _**your **_free repairs you realize?_" he replied and heard David's laughter on the other end.

"_We're swinging by the zoids shop in Killika city Jhese, I hear they have an open auction going and I want to pick up some new gear for the 'wolf, you could sell some of that junk to make some room for any guns I buy_".


	2. Chapter 2

ZOIDS

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The last thing that Jhese was expecting to find at the auction was what he bought, it was love at first sight the auctioneer wrote it off as cheap for scrap but Jhese could only see beauty, two bids and four thousand dollars later it was his. A dark spiner, the armour had all been removed either scrapped or destroyed and the spine was almost non existent but this imperial machine had potential, people had thrown rocks at it because this was republic soil but the zoid seemed to Jhese to be standing proudly simply to mock them.

Jhese purchased some other materials and sold everything in the trailer, bar the bike, plus sold a literal pile of scrap metal from the hanger, he also purchased a new tank for his bike.

David could not for the life of him figure out what Jhese was planning with the spiner but he seemed bursting with energy when he was dropped with all his newly bought junk that seemed in David's eyes to be less useful than what Jhese had sold.

Jhese set to work as soon as his teammate had left sight.

To his team mates Jhese seemed to be very remote but not quite distracted, his normally smooth riding had an almost lazy quality as if Jhese hadn't quite been sleeping right but he got the job done, the thing that bothered the team the most was the agitated way Jhese was when they tried talking to him.

About three months after the auction Cyrus had had enough and visited Jhese at home, only to find it and the hanger empty Cyrus got into the cockpit of his pteras and was about to take off when he heard a noise behind the hanger he whirled the pteras around in time to see a black dark spiner emerging.

Something was not right.

Cyrus took to the air and the black spiner turned tail and ran.

Black?

Dark spiners were usually green and this one even lacked a spine, this did not seem to bother the zoids performance as it ran at an impressive pace of two hundred and fifty mph, not a hard speed to keep up with for a flying zoid but very nimble for a large ground zoid, then to Cyrus's surprise twin thrusters emerged from the spiner's shoulders and propelled it an extra fifty mph faster!

Then a voice came over the radio "_pretty nifty isn't it Cyrus?_" Cyrus blinked

"_Jhese?_"

"_Yep_" the black zoid stopped and looked up at the circling pteras overhead "_I call it the shadowsaur CAS_"

"_CAS?! You mean there is more of that… that thing I haven't seen?_"

"_Well they aren't finished yet but yes!_"

Back on the ground Cyrus looked uneasily up at the black zoid "I don't know how I feel about it except that black makes me really uneasy"

Jhese grinned "the other armours are dark blue and red"

"Oh that's all right then" muttered Cyrus uneasily "what are the specialties?"

"The black is for fighting armor; it has boosters from a zabat that help it get in close quickly and accelerate quicker. It also has blades from that zabats wings hidden in its arms and the dark spiners original cannon for 'just in case situations'"

"What about the other two?" asked Cyrus.

"The red is for fire power and the blue I want to be for high speed battles but I don't have boosters big enough to move faster than the black armour I want better weapons for the red one too but I can't afford it yet."

Cyrus grinned "the war is over and battles are starting again, we could enter as a team. The other two are in what about you?"

"I'm in"

The day of the first battle dawned hot and bright under the planet Zi's two suns, this planet was not the native land of humans, they migrated from Earth and found a land once ruled by a race of advanced bipeds the long gone peoples who created the warlike zoids and the cores that gave them a limited artificial intelligence, the ability to feel emotions such as rage, fear and stage fright a problem that was currently plaguing Jhese and Shads the shadowsaur.

"Shads what are you doing? What is wrong?" screams Jhese as he desperately tries to steer a course through the attacking rev raptors, a camera droid whizzes past _oh great _thinks Jhese _people are watching this, _Shads picking up on Jhese's fear panics worse and he cowers away from a 'raptor that he outweighs by at least a tonne, in his harness in the cockpit Jhese sees David being set upon by two rev raptors. The handy cap system means that since two of the crews zoids are medium or above and one is of the flying variety an extra two small zoids are allowed to compete for the other team the "Riptearers" giving them a line up of six zoids (all rev raptors) to face an attack kat, command wolf, pteras and Shads.


	3. Chapter 3

ZOIDS

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Jhese feels the guilt they are going to be knocked out of the tournament. Because of him. Because HE hadn't thought that maybe his zoid might suffer nerves, or worse, stage fright. David's 'wolf roared in frustration as the two 'raptors danced just out of its range peppering it with light artillery.

Suddenly something in Shads snaps, his stage fright has cleared and he is peeved. The once abused imperial zoid roared into action, its powerful legs propelling it forward and between two 'raptors, the blades secreted in its arm plating spring out catching the 'raptors across their chests in a shower of sparks and super heated metal as they leave large gouges in their wake. As Shads tears through the battle field reaping the "raptors like death himself, his mind sees his short past.

His first test run where he is pitted against two rev raptors, his pilot freezes and the 'raptors tear his old armour to shreds, being refitted and sent to battle as cannon fodder, being captured by the republic and abused as a sign of the "imperial enemy" and lastly but defiantly not least, a skinny brown haired youth who gazed up at him and despite being a republic citizen sighing "you are perfect" that same boy outfitting him with armour and spraying him with fresh paint fixing his rusted joints and other minor wear, and now piloting him to aid his friend in a time of need.

Shads will do anything for this human.

The 'raptor looks up, too late, to see a dark shape hurl itself upon him, his pilot tries to react but neither human nor zoid is fast enough to evade the wrath of the shadowsaur. The sight of his companion being torn down momentarily distracts the second pilot from the command wolf a short lapse but enough for the 'wolf to cover the distance between it and its blue 'raptor tormentor. David whirls his command wolf away from the now disabled 'raptor looking for more places to help out his team. Kat in her attack kat are locked in single combat with a rev raptor but definitely looks to have the upper hand. A disabled 'raptor that she took down after it was hit by the shadowsaur's blades lies nearby. Cyrus circles a pair of 'raptors blasting them from way out of reach and, there, a 'raptor trying to sneak up on Kat as she battles with its teammate, David aims and fires, the 'raptor shudders then collapses. David then takes aim at the 'raptor Kat is struggling with but a blur in his sight makes him pause, the blur turns into Shads who cuts the 'raptor out from under Kat and the two turn to face the two battered 'raptors being plagued by Cyrus. The two 'raptor pilots seeing their situation instantly shut down their systems to avoid further damage costs, surrender.

Back at Cyrus's comfy shelter the team celebrates with pizza and movies, none of them really knew what the prize money for battles would be like, the answer was triple the amount that bounty hunters made from chasing off wild zoids, a bounty hunter could make more by killing people and zoids, but the crew was completely opposed to that.

"So I'm getting myself a new zoid" stated Kat

"What type?" asks Cyrus thinking that he might do the same thing or at least upgrade his pteras to something with a bit more power.

"Some cat type" replies Kat, everyone knows she wants a white liger type, but they are as rare as zoids come; with very few units in existence most of which are temperamental and will only accept one pilot. "Probably only get a zaber fang though" she sighs

David grins "I'm fine with my 'wolf"

"I'm gonna make new armour for my shadowsaur" says Jhese

"Ooh goody" squeals Kat in a very not-Kat way "we can have dress up parties" sarcasm.

"Sure" Jhese replies "if you can stomach a dress"

"Forget it" growls Kat

The communicator buzzes, loudly and the telescreen indicator lights up, Cyrus presses a few buttons on the remote and the movie is replaced by a stern looking old grouch named Chase "_Greetings to the crew or should it be as the judge man puts it "Team Krew"? Haw. Congratulations on your victory in today's match, tomorrows match will be held on the forest field at thirteen hundred hours_"

"Forest field?" enquires Cyrus

"_Yes_" replies Chase "_there are four different fields named according to description, today you faced the Team Riptearers on the savanna fields, tomorrow your battle will be staged in the tight trails of the forest field, there is also the canyon field and the lake field, which you may yet have to compete on_."

"Thank you official Chase, we will all get some sleep"

"_Do not call me official boy, Chase is what I like to be called and Chase I will be called_!"

"Goodnight Official Chase!" came the instant reply from the crew

"_Bloody kids_" cursed Chase under his breath then with a debonair wink he closed the connection. The crew sat in silence for a moment that was soon broken by their leader "you heard the man team bunk up and buck up! Bed!"

The second day of the tournament began much better than the first but as luck would have it the crew ended up facing the wolf pack.

Both teams had made it through to the second round and exchanged warm greetings and congratulations with their on-off teammates, until the draw was read.

Compliments changed mid sentence to good natured insults as the warriors left for their launch areas team Krew in the north team Wolf pack in the south.

A four on four match in the tight forest of tree trunks and foliage four command wolves facing one shadowsaur, an attack kat, a pteras and a command wolf A.C.

This would be a match fought with only the most fleeting glimpses of an opponent until close combat could be achieved.

Cyrus took the lead

"_Kat, they're probably on the lookout to shoot down the pteras early and leave you guys blind, so I want you to use the 'Kat's stealth mode for reconnaissance. Jhese the terrain works both for and against your zoid and they can probably follow it blind-folded so you're going to run a wide loop with as little trail as possible make it look like you're trying to be stealthy meet us back here in an hour, if you stumble upon single wolves take 'em down, Kat follow him at a discreet distance and return with numbers, aid him only when necessary_".

Jhese took off.

The shadowsaur handled superbly through the winding trails of the forests leaving only the barest of gashes in trees when they passed through narrow gaps or took sharp turns and the tail whipped saplings into splinters. The first sign of pursuit came from the corner of Jhese's eye when a 'wolf paced him from the side. Jhese veered towards the zoid and it promptly vanished from sight.

"_Kat, down_!" Jhese jelled as he pulled a hard one eighty degree turn, trusting that

Kathleen had taken his warning Jhese opened fire.

Another turn of ninety degrees and Jhese was heading to the rendezvous point.

The wolf pack struck.

If a person could look through Jhese's eyes when he was being teased about his bike the face they would have seen the most would have belonged to Dean Finn, it wasn't that Dean disliked Jhese; he just thought that the bike loaded down with guns was hilarious.

When the 'wolves gathered around Shads the distinctive red cheeks of Dean's 'wolf were the first thing Jhese recognized firing the boosters and making a hard right swerve Jhese burst through the trees and slammed the command wolf.

All hell broke loose.

The 'pack and Jhese burst into a clearing that looked to have been recently made and found themselves under the heavy fire of Cyrus, Kat and David.

The 'pack turned to flee back into the forest only to be set upon by Jhese and the shadowsaur Dean and Colby made the safety of the forest but Flint was taken down by Jhese and Scott felled by collective fire from the other three.

Then the 'wolves returned fire from the forest cover. Cyrus took to the air and was shot down, Kat, David and Jhese went for cover. Kat didn't make it; a lucky shot felled the attack kat while her team disappeared into the cover. David and Jhese had a two on two match to win, they decided to stay within sight of each other but only barely. Then flames erupted to Jhese's left, one of the 'pack was burning away the forest!

"_Back to the clearing_!" yelled David but Jhese was gone.

Dean watched as the flames leaped and played over the trees, burning the forest was wrong.

He knew it.

Colby was going too far to win this match, someone could get hurt in that blaze or worse…

Out of the bushes burst a blue command wolf only to be shot down by Colby's twin cannon. Cyrus and Jhese were still somewhere in that inferno. Dean urged the command wolf forward. He couldn't let his friends get hurt. The thick smoke swiftly enveloped the command wolf.

Colby had won. He could feel it; the only ones left when he started the fire had been David and Jhese, now David's command wolf lay frozen at the feet of Colby's 'wolf and Jhese was probably pinned down in the flames his new zoid being scorched into surrender.

Colby growled

Why had Dean taken off into the blaze? To shoot down Jhese? To claim the personal points for himself? Colby chuckled to himself. He'd fix Dean tonight. He would only get half of his share. Colby would take the rest himself as the leader. He watched the fire, he had always liked the way flames moved, one day he wished to own a zoid that moved that way, and smoke, that was something he always liked about the command wolves their smoke units and the way they could disappear into the swirling haze.

Colby watched that swirling haze now and smiled victory was sweet.

Jhese and Shads burst through the thick smoke, Colby tried to react but was too slow. Shads clamped down on the command wolf's back and shook. Colby pressed the controls forward and stomped down hard on the pedals, the 'wolf responded instantly kicking off the ground and barreling into the shadowsaur's chest releasing its powerful grip on the 'wolf's neck. Colby piloted the wolf to the far side of the clearing and turned to fire on the shadowsaur only to find it only a meter behind, too close for the cannons; Colby was forced to fight with the wolf's teeth and claws.

He charged, only to find himself hoisted from the ground by the shadowsaur, the mighty jaws opened and shut.

Colby feinted.

Jhese turned as another command wolf emerged from the smoke, Dean.

The shadowsaur braced ready to charge then hesitated in the 'wolf's jaws was Cyrus's pteras, Dean had dragged him to safety.

The command wolf dropped the pteras then turned to face the black zoid, Dean switched off the controls. The match was over.


	4. Chapter 4

ZOIDS

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

"Wonderful" exclaims Cyrus "we only have two zoids that we can have ready for the quarter final match tomorrow"

Three figures approached the dejected members of the crew.

The wolf pack… or part of it.

Dean, a lanky, blonde youth of around sixteen, his battle outfit consisting of black on black leather jacket and pants, goggles and gloves, and a flurescent t-shirt.

Scott, shorter and more powerfully built than Dean with blonde hair, that often made Jhese believe they must be brothers, he wore a black long sleeved shirt with his favorite band name over dark blue jeans and fingerless gloves.

And Flint, Flint could blend in anywhere in the world, average height, average build, dark hair that always seemed to be the most common colour in the area. Even his clothes were blending; Brown leather jacket, blue jeans, and brown gauntlets, none of which hinted at it's owners personality.

"What do you want?" growled the crew's leader

"Colby is gone" stated Dean

"What do you mean gone?" asked Kat

"He ran off after calling us losers, said he didn't want to be part of such a weak team"

"And this concerns us why?" asked Cyrus

"Our team leader is gone. Making us free agents." Replied Dean "we want to help"

"You want to join our crew?" Cyrus was mystified

"We can offer two command wolves for tomorrow's quarter final."

Cyrus looks up "you serious?"

"Yes"

"How much do you want?"

"Team member pay cheque" Dean says.

"Dude you're hired" replies Cyrus "welcome to the crew.

"An attack kat, two command wolves and a shadowsaur" muses Jhese "an interesting line up".

"The canyon field is a field where flying zoids reign supreme. Too bad neither team has one!" that eternally happy voice owned by cheerleaders and former cheerleaders drives her to violence, that peppy, squeaky, happy voice makes Kat want to throttle kittens and drown puppies and does she ever hate cheerleaders. Kat scans the canyons from her perch. The prattling commentator is right; flyers do rule the canyons but cats aren't far behind. This match will be decided by her and her attack kat, from her vantage point Kat can see all and even the best gun sniper would be sorely tested to spot her let alone score a hit.

Movement, Kat watches a shape detach itself from the wall, an Iron Kong, the big gorilla is easily three times the weight of her attack kat with superior power in most areas, and the pilot is good, in a fair fight it would make waste from Kat's zoid, Kat however does not plan on fighting "fair".

Kat squeezes the trigger once then twice more for good measure and the ape disappears under a blanket of ash and debris, at least two of those shots were direct hits, not enough to put it out of commission but that isn't her job.

"_Here kitty, kitty_" sings the Kong's pilot, the psycho, the 'Kong shakes off the debris and moves away from the canyon wall. A highly polished paint job shows the fruits of Kat's handiwork, Kat grins, the Iron Kong's pilot notices the damage too, "_You're dead kitty!_" he howles.

Bang!

A bullet from the shadowsaur strikes the ape in the head.

Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam! The command wolves join their fire to that of the shadowsaur then all goes quiet.

The Kong still stands

"_Ha, ha, ha_" laughs its pilot just before the shadowsaur slashes the zoid with its blades.

"_What is the count_?" calls Jhese over the radio

"_One guyshak and two stealth vipers unaccounted for_" replies Kat

Bang!

"_One stealth viper and one guyshak_" updates Dean; the guy is lethal with those canons.

A sound causes Kat to whirl her zoid, finding herself face to face with the final stealth viper, shots ring through the canyon indicating the discovery of the guyshak, the 'viper sways wearily as it prepares to strike, Kat tenses, and the standoff begins.

The 'viper lunges.

Kat reacts.

And the two zoids with their pilots hurtle off the plateau, rolling, clawing and biting to the earth, a clawing, hissing, metalic landslide. The snake lands wrapped around the 'kat, its head rears back ready to strike at Kat's zoid.

Bam! Bam!

Two shots connect with the 'vipers head in quick succession. Freezing its combat systems.

"_You alright Kat_?" Cyrus's voice rings with concern

"Fine" mutters Kat surveying her wrecked zoid "I'm gonna need some serious repairs or a new zoid though".

Cyrus's shelter is empty.

David isn't home either.

Kat heads out to Jhese's hanger, it is also quiet, but Kat's keen eyes notice the big door slightly open, Jhese can be a slob some days, well, most days, but he always locks the doors.

Kat enters.

Inside the hanger is gloomy and even Kat can only see large shapes. Then light fills the room temporarily blinding Kat's vision. When her sight returns she sees the shape.

A Lightning Ciax.

The sleek zoid is black lined with dark maroon giving it a sinister streamlined look. For the first time in her life Kat is speechless. The crew gathers around her and she nearly breaks down. These people are the closest thing she has to a family since her older brother died on the front lines.

"Happy Birthday Kat" they all sing.

That does it, Kat cries.


	5. Chapter 5

ZOIDS

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The tournament final is scheduled three days after the quarter finals, giving the teams time to repair their zoids, not much point in throwing trashed zoids in the arenas they don't create excitement.

The crew spends the three days helping Jhese fix their totaled zoids and check over their good ones. They currently have four command wolves, one with an A.C. unit (Colby took the fifth 'wolf when he left), a pteras, a lightning ciax and the shadowsaur.

Cyrus sells his pteras for a redler, a flying dragon type zoid, and Jhese purchases the parts to finish his red armour for the shadowsaur C.A.S.

"_Alright_" sings Jhese as the bright red zoid walks out of the hanger "_I call it the __Vulcansaur_" the crew laughs.

"_What_?" Jhese is indignant. Shads voices his agreement.

"He looks like a porcupine" chuckles Dean "The guns are spines!"

Two large cannons grace the shoulders while gattling guns, lasers and rail guns line the back and even face backwards off the tail. The legs sport heavy suspension and stabilizers, to hold the shadowsaur erect, and an e-shield generator lies between the cannons. The whole effect seemed to be that of a large mechanical porcupine.

"_I need to re-think this_" muttered Jhese, as he turned the shadowsaur back to the hanger.

"We'll need a new team name after this" said Cyrus when Jhese had returned "we aren't the wolf pack and I don't like team Krew either so after this tournament we change our name"

"How abou-" began Dean

"After the tournament" repeated Cyrus cutting Dean's suggestion short. "Time for a field test" Dean grins but holds his silence.

Soonthe crew returnswith their zoids to the hanger doors.

"_Dean, David,Flint and Scott, I want a smoke dragon formation_"

The smoke dragon was a cloaking maneuver that the team had devised since the pack had joined their ranks; the command wolves were equipped with smoke units that could be used to escape pursuit by releasing clouds of thick smoke, Cyrus had seen this as a method of concealing numbers, David's blue command wolf A.C. was now painted in a tan and grey color scheme similar to the regular command wolf units. The wolves ran in a complex pattern disappearing into the cover of the lead 'wolf only to re- emerge later to take the lead moments later. The enemy could never see more than two wolves at any point in the exercise, Jhese calculated that the smoke-screen could hide as many as twelve zoids besides the four 'wolves.

Cyrus flew overhead to watch the maneuver from all angles calling encouragement to the crew

"_Jhese I can see your tail_"

Jhese sped up and the black zoid vanished from sight.

"'_Wolves, longer zigzags you aren't covering enough ground_"

The smoke spread further.

"_Alright guy's that is perfect. Keep it up for three more laps_"

The team kept practicing

Meanwhile on an overlooking hill a cloaked figure observes the session.

"Bloody traitors" he mutters as he watches the team in action "you will suffer tomorrow whenI crush your precious zoids, every one of them, you wont know what hit you"

He pulls out a set of binoculars to get a closer look. So focused is he on the activity on the field below that he doesn't notice a second figures arrival.

"Is that them?" enquires the second person.

The first figure jumps and turns.

"Yeah"he growls, still slightly flustered.

Thenew arrival smirks under his hood.

"All of them?"

"There are four more in the smoke cover"

"An interesting tactic, but it has weaknesses"

The first figure turns to enquire a meaning, but sees only the retreating form of a slightly wolf-like zoid.

Colby curses.

The day has arrived and the crew finds that they will be competing on the canyon field, a six on six match with unlimited arsenals.

Their opponents are a team called the "Shadow-runners"

That is the extent of the data bases knowledge.

"Useless piece of junk" snarls Kat "teams are supposed to hand over all zoids data to make the match fair" the hot tempered female swings at nothing in particular, nearly hitting Scott who ducks back snarling a curse at the upset red-head.

"Speaking of rules we have seven members and can only field six, so who sits out?" asked Dean.

"Me" replied Cyrus.

"But what if they have flying zoids?" asked Scott, clearly not liking the idea of going into battle without every advantage avaliable, a flying zoid would be a huge advantage if their opponents didn't have one and it would take pressure off the team if they did.

"Shoot them down" Cyrus stated "They have an advantage. They aren't invincible, besides I'm not part of the maneuver"

"We can do the maneuver with only two or three" Jhese muses "and the redler could keep up if you could make it run on its legs. I'll mount a weapon to it"

"What do you guys say?" asks Cyrus


	6. Chapter 6

ZOIDS

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

In the opposite hanger the Team Shadow-Runners prepare to do battle, all zoids have been loaded onto the launch platform and the team does a final rundown on strategy.

"The boss told us not to blow our cover, if we lose we lose. No cheating"

"The boss this, the boss that, you're our leader" comes the reply

"And I take orders from the boss, we are here to test our new zoids, not win at the cost of our cover"

The argument is over.

The launch platform arrives at ground level and the team departs.

Colby glares after them.

................................

Through the canyons weaves the cloud of smoke, heralded by what appears to be a pair of command wolves.

In a twisting maze of stone walls the cloud heads north, always north. This strange two zoid stampede finally reaches its destination and stop. They have run all the way to the enemy's base, to find it quiet, and empty.

"_I don't like this_" mutters Dean his command wolf still spurting blinding smoke.

"_Me neither_" replies Scott "_it feels like a trap_"

"_Of course it's a trap_" Dean snorts at his companion "_I don't like the lack of signs to prove it is a trap, they should be firing at us or something_"

"_That can be remedied_" a voice calls from the radios

A shadow detaches itself from the canyon walls

"_A shadow fox_" breathes Scott, but realizes his mistake, although the zoid is lanky and of a canine nature, it is not a shadow fox. The military had spent vast sums of money trying to recreate the shadow fox for mass production, ultimately they had failed. This was the result of that failure.

The Coyote.

Four more shapes drop around the smoke barrier, medium sized zoids that look like large rev raptors.

"_Rev shinobi, FIRE!_"

The 'wolves drop the barrier and charge the Coyote as the shinobi fire into the haze. The smoke is replaced with flying debris.

The Coyote nimbly leaps from the reach of the charging 'wolves; scaling the wall with all the difficulty of a sparrow hopping from branch to branch, then turns to survey the ambush results, the debris settles down to reveal only one zoid, a large black dinosaur type bearing slight resemblance to a dark spiner standing unscathed on the shredded turf.

"_KEEP FIRING!_" screams the murk wolf pilot "_I want those zoids-_"

His orders are cut short by a purple blur that strikes his brown zoid from its perch.

"_Scott, Dean get the Coyote!_" yells Cyrus as his redler and the Coyote hit the earth, almost instantly the two 'wolves remove the Coyote from the battle.

"_NOOOO!_" roars the Coyote's pilot as its systems shut down.

Jhese flicks the switch on the shadowsaur's controls as the shinobi open fire once more, the shields that protected Shads from the first brutal assault flicker back to life taking the brunt of the second, and urges his zoid forwards into striking range of one of the sinister looking reptilians, his thrusters halve the time he takes.

Too late the pilot reacts and his zoid crashes to the ground while Jhese drops the shield and rockets towards a second victim.

The rev shinobi scatter with the idea of firing from more angles when shells explode around them rocking the canyon walls; there are three 'wolves and a redler firing at them. Jhese and Shads add their firepower to the hunt and three 'shinobi fall to the combined assault, the fourth leaps up the wall much like the Coyote did. Explosions track its movements until it disappears over the lip.

Cyrus prepared to give chase when the sixth zoid of the shadow-runners made its appearance, a mighty roar cut through the canyon like an explosion, followed by a zoid that moved with the quicksilver grace usually only mastered by the feline family.

A white zoid that many pilots had dreamed of piloting.

The zoid's powers lay both in its status as an ultimate-x and its ability to change armourment to suit all forms of combat. This unit was white with red and gold edging.

"_What the hell kind of armour is that?_" cried Cyrus

"_Meet the Koning Wolf X.V._" Comes the pilot's voice "_a new twist that makes the Koning Wolf unit a simple killer._"

The armour made the zoid look like a wolf headed griffon. Twin boosters could double speed and acceleration, even turning the zoids longer leaps into short flights, a unicorn style horn graced the head giving the 'wolf a lancing weapon for its high speed charges, a double shock cannon (that had become popular after Bit Cloud's triumph in the Royal Cup) had been attached to the chest of the zoid and was protected but not blocked by the armour forming the 'wolf's bib. The big golden front claws were extended by two scythe-like claws that drew up and away from the ground like a raptors and Jhese was positive that it had blades and a shield just like a zero-Schneider.

This zoid is all class.

But this is six on two.

The boys charge.

Kat watches the shinobi scale the cliff wall, no doubt this guy is a pro. Hunting him will be a challenge, but how challenging Kat is patient enough to find out, she turns her lightning-siax and follows the shinobi's trail.

The Koning Wolf X.V. reacts with speed that no human can hope to match whirling and slashing, the boys fall back in shock. Not much is known about the abilities of a Koning Wolf; people say that facing one in combat is akin to feeding your zoid to a tin shredder, like a canine version of liger zero units; and that's one only using the standard combat parts.

Jhese surveys his teammates; no serious damage, but they didn't even scratch the .

"_Fire!_" commands Cyrus

The 'wolves obey. Double cannon fire from three command wolves whiz towards the liger, its pilot simply laughs and engages the shield.

"_Spread out!_" yells Cyrus

"_No!_" Jhese calls "_smoke dragon!_" The three 'wolves engage their smoke units.

When the smoke clears the Koning Wolf stands alone, 'wolves, shadowsaur and the redler have vanished.

"No matter" snarls the XV pilot "I was born to hunt"

The XV stalks away from the launch ramp and enters the canyon. A bullet explodes near the 'wolf's flank, the 'wolf and pilot ignore it, a second shell whistles towards them, almost in contempt the 'wolf throws up its shields, it disintegrates against the glowing barrier, the XV's pilot smirks and lowers the barrier only to be struck by two more bullets that he couldn't hear over the shields low hum, a mistake he won't make twice.

The 'wolf voices its irritation.

More shells fly the Koning Wolf's way and the pilot leaves the shield up, the insolent pups are testing him, the shells stop, shields off and the shelling begins anew, pests they are trying to burn his generators, they will simply try to wear him down without the courage to face the XV in combat.

A saurian roar cuts through the canyons, followed by the black saurian zoid.

Boosters' screaming along with Cyrus over the radio, Jhese holds on inside the cockpit. Shads crashes into the XV head on. The zoid rolls and returns to its feet in one swift motion. Shads dug in his claws and scraped to a halt just outside of claw-reach, screaming a brutal challenge at the Koning Wolf.

The 'wolf howls acceptance.

Jhese fires the thrusters as the shadowsaur leaps at the 'wolf, propelling him above the zoids flashing claws and teeth, then disengaging the left makes a spinning turn above his opponent's head.

"Shads what are you DOING?" shouts Jhese "that zoid will shred you!"

The shadowsaur ignores his pilot and charges again.

"Fine! I'll do my best to see that you don't come home in pieces"

Jhese fires the left thruster whipping a hard right turn then whips back to the left raking the XV's side with Shad's claws. The 'wolf responds; slashing the shadowsaur's flank only microseconds later. Shadow pivots, his powerful tail whizzing through the space occupied by the XV only hundredths of a second earlier, the XV lands on Shadow's back digging its claws in for purchase Shadow fire his canons but the XV manages to keep its foreparts atop his back, the hindquarters drop beside him and he deals out a mighty kick, the 'wolf sprawls a short distance before gathering itself and pouncing again knocking Shadow on his side. Shadow rolls with the blow and momentum carries the XV straight over the top and underneath the shadowsaur, all four paws instantly lock their claws into Shadows armour and kick, lifting Shadow from all purchase on the ground he roars and unsheathes his zabat blades scoring the 'wolf's muzzle and stomach, the XV roars frustration and fires its boosters launching it out from under the shadowsaur, with a cat's agility it rolls to its feet and leaps onto a wall, Jhese thinks it is trying to escape, the 'wolf braces on the wall and kicks of in one fluid motion turning an ugly escape into an attack that can only be described as poetry in motion.

Shadow charged to meet it but the 'wolf activated its boosters and sailed over the shadowsaur in a move previously used by Jhese and Shadow themselves, the 'wolf landed lightly (for a twenty odd tonne zoid) and turned to face them.

"_So you like hidden weaponry do you?_" growled the Koning Wolf pilot "_this should tickle your fancy_"

The XV's weaponry began to emerge; blades behind its mane flicked forward to surround the unicorn horn in the center of its head, the blades on its ankles swiveled down to extend the range of the Koning Wolf's copied strike laser claw, the boosters folded out from the body to reveal stubby wings armed with a single canon on each and finally from the back extended a tail stabilizer, and out of this emerged two fins that Jhese believed could be used as blades.

"Crud" Jhese breathed.

The 'wolf charged once again. Shadow did not back down but leaped forwards to meet the Koning Wolf XV head on.


	7. Chapter 7

ZOIDS

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The 'wolfs blades lit up with a pulsing energy, the same color as its shields Jhese dimly noted. SHHWWWIIINNNG! The glowing blades easily severed the blade from Shad's left arm as the XV dove past. Shads screamed in fury, then to Jhese's amazement the right blade sizzled as energy leaped along its length. Jhese checked the monitors to find the source of the energy, nothing in the weaponry, but then Jhese checked the shield energy, and surely enough it was being diverted to the zabat blade, _store that data, I'll be double clicking it later_ thought Jhese. The XV charged again, seeking to impale Shadow on its powerful horn; Shadow leapt nimbly to the side and raked the 'wolf with its blade. The XV roared, once more it had been evaded and thwarted, it moved forward again this time more cautiously, Shadow circled to the right moving to keep its blade at the ready. The XV lunged and Shadow whipped the blade round only to find the XV just outside the range, a feint, the Koning Wolf XV lunged for real slashing Shadow with both claws and horn, the shadowsaur struggled slashing, clawing and biting as the Koning Wolf bore it to the ground, pinned Shads thrashed to find purchase but the XV had him trapped, it pulled back its head ready to drive the horn through Shad's core-

Thump! A rev shinobi zoid lands nearby distracting the Koning Wolf and Shadowsaur. Precious few moments that is all Dean needs to take its shot, a well aimed shell that hits the 'wolf below the horn. The shields hum to life as the pilot, tries to protect his zoid from the three command wolves, lightning siax and redler that have started firing on it.

Both the shield and the energy radiating from the horns disappear and the 'wolf buckles under the weight of the attack.

"_Keep it up, we almost have him beat!_" commands Cyrus

An explosion blows all the zoids off their feet, Jhese whose zoid is already on the ground looks up at the sky which is now blocked from view by a massive shape.

A Whalord.

The massive cruiser drops a line towards the Koning Wolf XV and a magnet secures it in place, another line is released (this one snagging the rev shinobi) and both zoids are hoisted away from the ground, as the crew watches the ship turns to expose its port side, and all the weaponry points towards them.

"_Darius and the shadow-runners may have failed to destroy you but I will have my revenge!_" booms a familiar voice.

"_Colby, you miserable cur!_" roars Dean

Colby.

"_TAKE COVER!_" yells Cyrus and the crew scatters.

Rocks superheat and explode, dust rains down and the canyon walls threaten to tumble as two command wolves drag a shadowsaur between them, Dean and Flint make for the launch platform where they can lower Jhese and Shadow into the relative safety of the bunker, when this task is complete and the platform rises the command wolves are on it, now armed with long range cannons and reinforced by David.

Cyrus, Scott and Kat have done their job as well, providing a distraction for the whalord while their teammates drag Jhese and his zoid to safety seemed like an easy task, and it was, but now the whalord has them pinned in a dead end.

"_Hah! Now your asses are dust_!" gloats Colby, enjoying the moment, just a little too long. Explosions on the other side of the whalord make the massive ship pitch towards the three medium sized zoids, its bombardment hitting short of its targets and spraying them with wasted earth.

An ultra phalanx flanked by two gogulas gunners and three command wolves stand on a plateau above the canyons

"_**WHALORD, SURRENDER OR BE DESTROYED! NO OTHER OFFERS WILL BE MADE! SURRENDER OR BE DESTROYED!**_"

"_Curse you Battle Union_" snarled Colby as he turned the whalord away

"_**DO NOT RUN OR YOU WILL BE SHOT DOWN! A BOARDING PARTY WILL BE TAKING CONTROL OF THE WHA**__-_"

"_THE HELL IT WILL!_" roared Colby he flicked the rear shields on and accelerated away, only suffering the shockwaves from the most powerful long range weapons.

Silence reigned… at least until Scott (blunt as they come) popped the big question-

"_So, do we still get the prize money_?"

_Note from the Author: Sorry about the shortness of this chapter, but it has to happen. You know... progressing the story and all that... mean old me huh?_


	8. Chapter 8

ZOIDS

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Colby glared at the figure of Darius as he paced in front of him.

"WHAT were you thinking?! I expressly forbid cheating and what do you do? Slink back to the whalord for extra fire power. Can you not accept defeat like a man? Are you a 'wolf pilot, or a simpering dog??? My father did not create the Backdraft organization to be a gang of bullies and cheap thugs, Altail, the fool, perverted the dream, he thought my father was just some gambling tycoon and a rich thug, he bought disrepute on the wonderful dream of Backdraft, with his hijacked battle schemes and pathetic attempts at building demolition machines, a fool and a half arsed standover man was all Altail ever was, and you would do the same to me? I will NOT be a bully. I WILL run the Zoid Battle Commission. Backdraft WILL be the ruling power of planet Zi. AM I UNDRESTOOD?"

Still glaring fiercely as he could, Colby nodded, he would not be cowed, he had family in high places, and a massive supply of money to fall back on, but most of all he had a dream, and an upgraded Command Wolf was not going to get him that dream, the Coyote would have to go.

……………………

The commander glared at Jhese, from the start they had not liked each other and a week in search of Colby and his new friends had not improved their opinions of each other.

"Get that worthless piece of imperial crap off the maintenance deck so we can work on the worthwhile zoids!"

"Worthless? I'll tell you what's worthless ya jerk. Your mechanical skills are worthless, and you can't pilot any of these 'worthwhile' zoids to save yourself." Jhese roared back.

"Is that a challenge little boy? Then prepare to have your arse handed to ya!" the commander growled, he stalked over to an intercom and swept back his hat before pressing the button and bellowing orders to the pilot "take us down now".

…………………

Jhese looked out over the plains before returning his gaze to his control system, trying to decide which armour to use on his zoid.

"This is stupid Jhese" muttered Dean "two of our most useful and powerful zoids tearing each other apart, what if we need them again?"

"Yeah I know, but I can't just back down!" Jhese replied

Dean snorted softly "that's the reason you asked me to run the C.A.S. system instead of Cyrus or Flint, both of them would have refused because it's a dumb idea".

"I think this is as good a time as any to test the turbosaur" Jhese declared, Dean snickered, snorted, laughed then cried with amusement.

"What?" Jhese demanded

"Turbosaur, what a crappy name man"

"Hey it took me days to decide on that"

"That just makes it funnier" Dean laughed again

"Alright then smart man what would you suggest?"

"I'm gonnagetmyselfintroublosaur?"

"Ha, ha"

"How about Shadow-Blazer?" asked Dean.

"That's perfect!" Jhese crowed "launch Shadowblazer!"

The platform rose as Dean operated its controls and the freshly named zoid roared its challenge to the world.

………………

Commander Hunt sat in the cockpit of his shield liger surveying the plains _now where is that little bounty hunter cretin?_ On a hunch he flicked on the shields, just to make sure they were working.

It saved him the match. And his zoid.

_Vrrrraaaaannnnng!_ A white blur flitted through his vision followed by a trail of sparks as something raked his shield with energy blades.

"Now that was cowardly boy" Hunt snarled as he turned the liger to face its foe then stopped.

Standing in front of him was not a dark spiner but a highly modified Koning Wolf.

"Hello Commander Hunt" drawled a voice over the com System "nice instincts by the way, they may have saved your life"

"Who are you? What is your business here?" Hunt roared

"Who am I? We is a more _appropriate_ term my dear commander"

Hunt looks around and sees what the Koning Wolf pilot means. They are not alone. Two shadow foxes and one of those Rev Shinobi zoids stalk across the plains towards him.

"Do you honestly believe that you can just waltz onto a battle ground and then waltz back off in one piece?" asks an un-amused Hunt

"No, we thought that we could walk onto your battle ground and watch as you and your little friends get blown away by our squadron of zabats!"

Hunt looked up, there, sure enough was a large squadron of at least forty or more zabats closing on the battle field.

"_BATTLE FIELD INVASION! BATTLE FIELD INVASION!_" Hunt roared into the com system "_I NEED BACK UP!_"

……………………..

Jhese charged towards the battle ground as fast as his zoid would allow which though impressive for a land zoid was no match for the zabats streaking overhead.

Think!

Light bulb!

"_Cyrus, get out here, we need a boost!_" Jhese yelled

"_Already here Jhese!_" Cyrus respondedas his redler swooped to ground level

"_Alright Cyrus I need you to grab Shads and floor it, yell your direction!_" Cyrus flew over and grappled the shadowsaur with his redler, finally getting an acceptable grip he yelled

"_Thrusters!_"

Jhese responded by hitting his own, and the two zoids rocketed towards the battlefield.

"_Alright Jhese I'm dropping you off here. Try to help Hunt with the ground zoids while I try to take down some of those zabats_" as the redler released its grip Jhese felt the shadow blazer slow down.

Showtime.

Jhese took in the battle field; Comm. Hunt was pinned down with his shields up trying to hold out against the zabats, waiting for an opening; Jhese finally spotted the ground zoids: two shadow foxes and that liger stood some distance off watching the action… an idea suddenly stuck Jhese "_Cyrus hold back a minute attack after I tell you too okay_".

"_Counting on ya Jhese_" came the reply

Jhese poured more juice to the thrusters and shot into the open then hit the brakes, the radar screen lit up as the zabats were registered as targets "Vulcan blast!" Jhese yelled as he squeezed all the triggers on the controls.

A Vulcan gattling gun identical to the ones used on the shadow foxes and two small rocket boxes carrying fifty flack rounds apiece unleashed their deadly fire at the zabats.

Instant fireworks.

Jhese hadn't chosen the ammunition for its power; although it did have a wicked punch, the arsenal was mostly made up of explosives that created smoke and spread some shrapnel but when fired into the ground or all at once it created instant mayhem; smoke and shrapnel filled the sky jamming radar and obscuring vision, the tight formation of the zabats was thrown into chaos. They crashed into one another and generally stopped firing on the commander, only the outside members of the formation evaded damage and even they received some shrapnel damage. Then all the zabats zeroed in on Shads, Jhese was already moving the twin redler thrusters propelling him towards the two 'foxes and the Rev Shinobi

"_Ha, ha! Brilliant!_" roars a voice over the intercom "_Drawing the zabats fire away from the shield liger and onto us but it won't work!_" with this statement three lights flicker as energy shields hum to life around the Koning Wolf and the two shadow foxes "_now let's see you hide amongst us!_" crows the voice, Jhese thinks it's the Koning Wolf's pilot.

"_Now!!!_" Jhese yells as soon as he passes through the enemy's ground troops followed by the zabats fire.

"_I gotcha Jhese!_" replies Cyrus as the redler opens fire on the tail of the zabats then peels away "_if I get minced you owe me big!_" Many of the zabats turn and pursue the newest threat but some still follow Jhese.

"Great, I've got some exterminating to do"

Meanwhile the Rev Shinobi and shadow foxes had turned their attention to Cyrus who was drawing the zabats fire over their zoids once again "_Fire on my command!_" yells the pilot of the energy liger as all three zoids focus their weapons on the redler.

BOOM! BOOM! "_You will __**NOT**__ get away with this, felons!_" commander Hunt roars as he fires on the zoids with his liger's shock cannons.


	9. Chapter 9

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Two whalords cruise into the scene as the Rev Shinobi falls, totaled, one is painted a dull camouflaging green and the other a deep purple. Both carriers lower their bottom launch bays, the purple whalord launches more zabats and the green launches multiple pteras units.

"_**NO!**_" roared the Koning Wolf pilot "_WITHDRAW ALL AIRIAL ZOIDS!_" then to Jhese "_three on three; you, the shield liger and the redler against me and the 'foxes, I want to finish what we started in the canyon_"

"_Cyrus?_" Jhese inquired

"_Boy this is a decision for the adults to make_" snapped comm. Hunt "_WE DO NOT NEGOTIATE WITH TERRORISTS OR CRIMINALS; SUBMIT QUIETLY! ANYTHING YOU SAY WILL BE USED AGAINST YOU IN THE COURT OF LAW!_"

"_Is that your final offer?_" Purred the Koning Wolf pilot "_then I guess its bye, bye commander_" the 'wolf pilot fired with its double shock cannons, the ligers shields blinked to life only to be blown away, smashing the shield liger to the earth, a second blast fired from the 'wolf's cannons, commander Hunt's eyes widened, a shadow fell across his zoid and he was rocked by an explosion. But the bullet never hit him.

"I'm sorry Shads" cried Jhese as a hole formed in the Shadowsaur's body "I'll rebuild you better".

Commander Hunt blinked.

The kid had sacrificed his zoid to keep him in the fight, emotions surged through him _little brat you are but don't think I can't be grateful _"what?" Commander Hunt blinked again in surprise as the energy gauge for the shields filled themselves "that ain't right…" the shield liger kicked and righted itself Commander Hunt simply looked on in astonishment as the weapons systems were deleted and replaced.

Cyrus gazed down at the liger, or what he could see of it. Jhese's smoke unit must have gone on the blink when his zoid was ruined. The shadow blazer did have a smoke unit didn't it? Cyrus questioned.

The smoke finally cleared and out of it stalked Commander Hunt, his new zoid gleaming blue under the planet Zi's two suns.

A blade liger.

"_You MONSTER!_" the Commander roared and pushed both control handles forwards ordering the blade liger into a deadly charge.

"_Bring it on, Punk_" the Koning Wolf XV pilot sneered and pushed his zoid forward to meet the challenge.

The blue and white zoids crashed together into a tangle of claws and teeth, roaring at each other while golden claws searched for a weakness in the enemies armour.

Meanwhile Cyrus was having problems of his own, the two shadow foxes had decided to focus on destroying him, Cyrus accelerated into the air away from their fire, they almost got him with a few shots on his way up _how on earth do I take out two shadow foxes?_ He wondered, five years ago the Zoid Battle Commission had managed to convince Brad Hunter to allow them to scan the shadow fox for its Zi-data on the condition that they limit the number of units made. Few existed and even less had pilots that could actually use them well, all were deadly. These two pilots looked to be pretty good.

Cyrus banked the redler didn't have any firing weapons integrated with the main hull and when it came to carrying arsenals it wasn't the best, at those times Cyrus missed his pteras.

Light-bulb!

"_David, I'm coming in ready the scatter bombs and the small laser!_" this was crazy, stupid, a Jhese idea. Cyrus landed the redler on the lower deck, and braced as it lifted into the hull of the whalord carrier. Cyrus never got bored of watching the mechanical arms work on his zoid, same as he never tired of helping Jhese in the workshop; he had no real affinity for machines and marvelled at those who did.

"C_yrus! She's ready to go!_" David informed him.

Cyrus snapped out of his daydream, what he had done was reckless; what if the shadow foxes had turned on Chaser, or started to use Jhese in his fallen zoid as target practice? Cyrus brushed al those thoughts from his mind; expect the worst hope for the best.

Jhese's favourite saying.

Cyrus launched.

………………….

Down on the ground Jhese watched as the two shadow foxes stalked towards the two fighting zoids, hoping to pick off the blade liger, _come on think _Jhese commanded himself _Cyrus seems to have run off and commander Hunt is in trouble, what do I do?_ Jhese looked around the cockpit of his totalled zoid until his eyes fell upon the flap underneath the targeting console.

………………..

Commander Hunt was finally getting used to his new weapons systems and it was starting to show in the fight, he was gaining the upper hand. Out of the corner of his eye Hunt finally noticed that he was not going to get this fight all his own way. The two shadow foxes were closing in and the redler was nowhere in sight, _crap_, was the only thought that sprang to mind.

…………………

_Jackpot!_ Thought Jhese as he found the two wires that triggered the firing mechanism for the rockets, _sorry Shads but desperate times call for desperate measures. _Jhese pushed open the cockpit lid and reached out to grab a hand hold; he then swung back onto his zoids neck and crawled to its shoulder to where the rockets were located _alright I won't get many shots, three probably, pray this works _Jhese cuddled the launcher with his legs and looked at the I.D. computer that held his registration number and individual point scores, then he pushed the enter button.

WWHFFOOOOOOOOSSSSHHH!

The rockets sped out of the launcher strait towards the shadow foxes.

BOOM!

BOOM!

_SHIT!_ Thought Jhese, he had forgotten about the other launcher, quickly he reached over and disconnected the triggering system, then looked up at the battle field as the dust cleared; no serious damage had been done to the shadow foxes but at least they were no longer levelling their guns at the fighting zoids but were now trying to work out who had shelled them, finally convinced that the shadowsaur was not wreaked they panned away from each other and started to stalk Jhese.

…………………

Cyrus looked down from the redler's cockpit;

_No way! _What he saw was Jhese sitting on the shoulder of his fallen zoid trying to aim the rocket case at a shadow fox while the other bounded towards him _last second rescue time _thought Cyrus to himself.

Taking careful aim at the shadow fox as it moved at speed wasn't easy but Cyrus wasn't going to rush this, he squeezed the trigger.

BANG!

The shadow fox closing on Jhese's flank flew sideways as a scatter bomb took it in the side. _Cyrus. Thought Jhese _"Your turn buddy!" he yelled as he punched the enter key and fired off a rocket; taking the shadow fox dead in the chest.

Hunt was finally having some luck of his own, the energy liger had rolled across his blade ligers legs and with a hard push on the controls Hunt had kicked it away from him.

Finally space, and a new toy to play with, Hunt engaged the weapon that made the blade liger…

Well…A blade liger.

The two blades locked into place and charged up with a feral hiss.

The Koning Wolf rolled to its feet and glanced around "_No way! No freaking way!_" screamed the pilot "_Release the zabats!_"

The purple whalord immediately opened its belly and began to launch the zabats; quickly the khaki green whalord launched its pteras units and three command wolves, a lightning-siax and two dibison.

"_NO!_" yelled Cyrus "_I've got to stop those shadow foxes!_"

"_Don't worry C. I've got 'em!_" replied Kat and Cyrus looked below to see the 'siax streaking towards the 'foxes. Obviously the 'foxes saw her too because they engaged their optic camouflage and their smoke units; disappearing into the shadows where Kat would not follow. The Koning Wolf made a similar disappearance under the cover of zabat fire. The frustrated warriors turned their attention to the zabats firing to destroy the unmanned ships.

Jhese watched dismally as parts from the zabats and pteras rained down on the battlefield "_Hey commander Hunt, what happens to all the parts when you guys get those guys?_"

Silence.

Then commander Hunt spoke "_We would usually gather 'em all and sell them to cover damages. But I guess there will be more than we could fit in the whalord; so feel free to scrounge the zabats but don't take any pteras parts and don't even think about pirating the whalord._"

Jhese grinned. With David's help he would scrounge up three or four zabats and sell them to get himself a new zoid body to transfer Shad's core into, the smile fell away as he realised that the shot had bored clean through the chest, there wasn't much hope that the core hadn't been ruptured or worse.

The last of the zabats fell to earth. Commander Hunt hit the console in anger "_damn it! How did that whalord manage to escape? I know they used all their zabats but they could have plenty of money to buy more of them or even something better. We can't have that, we only got lucky because of well you all saw what happened and Jhese… where is Jhese?_


	10. Chapter 10

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Jhese was in fact busy; he had picked up six zabats from the battle and was confident that he could sell four as functional units with spare parts. The best news to him was that the zoid core from Shads was completely unharmed, though the rest of the body was a total write off. The blast had cut through all the chassis and structural framing but all the armour except the chest and two plates from the back were fine.

David heaved himself and the trailer full of spare parts into the hanger "Jhese, some of the zabats that have been left behind still have components that could fetch some dollars if we could get them out in working order" he shook out his shoulders "so I'll have my 'A.C. wolf while I go collect them"

"Yeah that's fine" Jhese waved David away "these won't be finished until well after you get back" David left and Jhese went back to work and back to brooding "I'm so sorry Shads, its all my fault. If I hadn't been so rash you would still be fine, I am an idiot"

"Damn straight, moron" Kat leant over Jhese's shoulder to examine his work.

"So much for sympathy" Jhese replied.

"I only give sympathy to those that really deserve it, you did play the hero, but you could have gotten both your asses fried out there by accepting that dumb challenge; and that idiot commander should have known better" Kat sighed "but boys will be fools"

Jhese glared back over his shoulder "and what does that make you tom-boy?"

"A hell of a lot smarter than you, after all my zoid is fine" Kat retorts "even after I came out to rescue your ass"

Silence.

"Look, I'm sorry. I didn't come down here just to insult you… I actually wanted to help, somehow…" Jhese looked up at Kat, the girl was like an older brother, ah, sister to him, but even he had never seen her sorry or apologetic before, he took a deep breath.

"How much do you know about zabats?"

Kat grinned "they make good target practice" then she looked thoughtful "do you still have the control receivers?"

"Most of 'em, but we don't have the transmitters"

"We don't need them exactly; I'm going to make a sort homing beacon for the radio signal that they use" Kat took off towards the junk sled to dig up the receivers, leaving Jhese alone with his problems.

Jhese, Cyrus, Finn, Scott and Dean walked along the isle that separated the displays of zoids, the ex-wolf pack members stared around in awe at the brand new zoids and modifications, while Cyrus tried to console a grumbling Jhese.

"Look Jhese, it's not all bad. So what if they don't have a second hand garage, don't be so cheap, these new zoids are awesome."

"I won't be able to afford a good one or even afford to modify it" Jhese looked away from his leader "Those zabats fetched us diddly squat!"

"Yeah well this is a Republic town-" Cyrus started

"I told you, that selling them all at once was a bad idea, it's all about rarity, you're just lucky I sold the spare parts to twenty odd people as rare Imperial parts" Scott finished.

Dean grinned "the only time Scott talks is when it involves money and on those occasions we all listen" Flint laughed and nodded, rubbing tears of mirth from his eyes.

"Bite me Dean" replied Scott shortly as possible.

………………..

Jhese wandered in his mind as he wandered through the showroom, barely looking at the displayed zoids, most were of Republic design; gun snipers, command wolves of all different types and gordos, there was nothing wrong with these zoids, but they weren't for Jhese; the gun snipers were small and nimble, they packed a killer arsenal of distance weapons, but fell behind in defence and close range combat, 'wolves were good all round but rather boring and gordos were just plain cumbersome. Then his eye caught it, a thing of beauty; the zoid looked similar to a gogulas, but smaller, much smaller probably rating as a medium zoid or just barely scraping in as a large type, its arms were longer than a gogulas's and tipped with claws that reminded Jhese of grappling hooks, this zoid was built to fight in close, it was narrower in the snout than a gogulas but thicker than a spinosaur, it would inflict a nasty bite, and it in some way made Jhese think of a liger zero, made famous by Bit Cloud, a junk dealer turned pro zoid warrior during the great peace, before the Back-draft wars.

Jhese was in love.

He made his way over to the display, not noticing or caring if the others had followed or not and stared up at the beautiful zoid, its silver body with electric blue panels looked almost festive, yet incredibly deadly. Jhese had to have it.

"Nice zoid isn't it lad" Jhese looked across at the speaker.

"Thomo!" the old man grinned, Thomo was one of the old mechanic Ben's friends; a zoid enthusiast who never retired from tinkering with his zoids.

"I call it the Gogu-Dragon, but no one believes in close range zoids any more so it's not too successful, I can't get a company to finance the cost of putting one on their teams, but in three years close range zoids will be all the rage again just like they were after Bit Cloud won the Royal Cup six years ago, and of course I can't find a zoid core that works for it" the old man sighed

"Is this one for sale?" asked Jhese.

………………..

"Holy shit" David stated as he bought up the Gogu-dragon's weapon system on the big monitor.

The crew were back in the whalord and waiting to see what the Gogu-dragon was capable of while David and Jhese programmed its combat system.

"I see an E-shielder that can take up to the damage of a Buster Cannon, so even if this thing moves like a cannon tortoise it is gonna get within range of most enemies, it is primarily a four legged zoid but it can raise up to make use of its claws; which I might add are called electro talons and can charge 5,000 volts into the enemy which will freeze most combat systems. Get this. It has two ion boosters modelled off the liger zero and all similar aero dynamics to keep it on the ground at high speeds. Okay this is the scary part; it has attachments that allow for the installation of just about any gun you want and it packs a C.A.S. system, but no parts have been built yet."

"I'll get around to it, when I can afford it"

The crew turned as one to look at Old Thomo as he walked in.

"These things cost. And it's hard to do test runs when you don't have a core for the blighter. Now where is this Dark spiner core you were telling me about lad?" Jhese got up and walked over to a storage tank

"In here" he said pointing at the lid "I wanted to make another one so I kept it fresh"

Thomo pressed the release button and the tank opened with a hiss.

"Alright you lot clear out. Core transplants are a delicate business, David and Jhese will you two please stay and help, I'm just an old geezer and there will be some heavy lifting involved, the rest of you sods… clear off!" scowling at the old mans antics and abusiveness the rest of the crew departed.

"Now gentlemen, it's time to operate." Thomo muttered

David and Jhese exchanged glances.

This could get interesting.

"Lady and Gentle- Ah who am I kidding guys and gal I present the new zoid known as the Gogu-dragon!" Jhese dropped into the cockpit of his new zoid as it roared a greeting, or maybe a challenge to the world. The electric blue shone in the afternoon sunlight and the 'dragon just looked plain cool. Jhese inserted his warrior I.D. and grinned as the canopy lit up in its own neon green glow "vengeance never looked this good"

"Well Mr. Vengeance" purred Kat "first you are going to have your ass handed to you in the Zoid Derby, as are all you other clowns!" Kat punched the air "my 'siax is going to cross that line for that big hunk of prize loot"

The Zoid Derby was a notorious race that unleashed as many as two hundred zoids together to compete over a four lap course that was known to be one of the hardest tests for man and zoid alike; Hell Kats, liger zero with Jaeger armour and of course the lightning siax were among the most common victors in this event, flying type zoids weren't allowed, but sometimes a zaber fang or a command wolf would outlast or simply outgun his opponents to be first across the line, one year a dark horn had literally blown his opposition away at the start using a large particle cannon to vaporise everything in front of him, which was… well… everything. The next year he tried the same trick and was met with a wall of E-shields. Jhese had always wanted to compete in this event but had up until now been held back by his lack of a zoid. But this year was different, he had a zoid and a competitive one at that, and that prize money was way too tempting to pass up; even third place got a payout that was almost four times the usual reward for a C- class victory, and first place made an easily enough to buy himself almost any zoid he could desire. Jhese leaned back in the cockpit seat, first thing he would have to do was change the interior, and there was no way his ass would last the eighty five kilometre race in this chair. A voice from below caught his attention

"- kids should just stay at home, I will win and make sure I blow those sad excuses for Tonka toys apart on my way to the line" Jhese looked over the rim of his 'dragon at a familiar figure. "Colby, you bastard!" Roared Scott "what do you want?"

"I just popped around to display my new toy and the next big winner of the Derby" Colby whistled and a wolfish zoid sprang lightly into view "meet my shadow fox XS, or extra speed, it can even outrun a lightning siax. On that note, adios losers!" Colby sprang into the cockpit of his zoid as Dean and his command wolf charged down the whalords loading ramp " pilot this jerk!" he yelled as he fired at the 'fox, but the nimble zoid merely fired its boosters and rocketed away from the blasts.

"_We are entering that race_" Dean stated in a way that invited no argument.


	11. Chapter 11

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The day of the big race dawned on a field of two hundred and thirty zoids of varying sizes and shapes, artillery bristled in the morning sun as Cyrus soaked up the atmosphere, being the only pilot in the crew without a ground zoid Cyrus was elected to run the pit lane for his team mates and his only help in the matter was Thomo whose desire to see the Gogu-dragon advertised was his only form of commitment, Cyrus still didn't like him. The main grandstand, seating over twenty thousand screaming fans, sat on the home straight and opposite an enormous screen that would display a raynos-view of the race for most of its duration. Cyrus tapped the keys to unload the zoids from the pit garages where they had spent the night, not a cheap exercise housing six zoids for a night, Cyrus had argued against this saying the zoids could spend the night outside, but Jhese had wanted to run system checks and Thomo had taken his side and things had snowballed from there until Cyrus had agreed on the terms that the pilots had to pay seventy percent of the costs, much grumbling had followed but cash had been forked over in the end and expenses were paid.

…………………..

Four command wolves, a lightning siax and the Gogu-dragon slid from their bunkers under the stands, the conveyer belt whined a bit but Cyrus wasn't worried, both bunkers and belt were designed to cater for much larger zoids than the ones it was currently moving. The three wolf-pack command wolves were the latest tribute to Jhese's custom prowess; newly dubbed the vendetta wolves they sported all the same arsenals as before and some added on speed enhancers, zabat thrusters mounted behind the shoulders provided thrust and stabilizing fins had been created to keep the V-wolves on the ground. The 'pack had spent the last week practicing with their new zoids at every opportunity and had discovered that the thrusters were only good for a short charge before overheating, this didn't seem to bother them as Jhese had suggested using the thrusters to accelerate rather than for extended top speed.

Cyrus operated the grappler to unload each zoid off the belt and place it at the dock where the pilots could board their craft and take them to the starting grid, each zoid carried one toolbox of basic tools meaning that some repairs could be made on the course but major repairs could only be done in pit lane.

Finally all Cyrus's teammates were in their zoids and lined up in their positions on the grid, the grid was arranged by a qualifying lap of a much shorter track and the fastest were placed at the front and slowest at the back, the track had been fairly smooth and flat so the front was mostly made up of 'siax's and even a zero schneider, with Kat among them, the rest of the crew were scattered in the middle of the pack, Cyrus watched wistfully as a raynos buzzed the grandstand thinking how much good practice it would be to be part of the raynos camera crew who would be filming the race; fifty raynos armed with tri cannon cameras plus the permanent units scattered around the course would capture the action allowing the monitor in the pit quarters to see almost any competitor at any point in the race, and allow Cyrus to monitor their status and progress and have any repairs work ready to go before they limped back to pit lane where Cyrus and Thomo would fix them up for the next lap. The banging door heralded Thomo's arrival to the pit quarters and Cyrus didn't even look up from the monitor as the older man flopped down in front of the console that he would be using, along with the Comm. System., to tell the team members when they were able to be accepted.

"You ready, Rip?" grunted Thomo "because this is where the action gets hot".

…………………

Colby sweated on the controls, ready to blast the lightning siax in front to bits as soon as the starting gun was fired, he watched the official raise the starting pistol and squeezed the trigger in anticipation.

BANG!

Colby fired and almost immediately yelled in frustration as a metal plate fell from the 'siax's double laser and blocked the shot, falling to the ground in front of his shadow fox XS. Colby swerved just in time to avoid the debris and the 'fox bounded out of the path of a Koning wolf which copped the shrapnel square in the face, but a koning wolf is a large zoid and what counts as a race ending blow to a 'siax or a shadow fox was just a momentary delay for the unlucky competitor. Colby accelerated hard without the boosters knowing that too much speed off the line might be slower than too little- SKREEE! A hell kat in front of Colby bit the dirt as its legs were blown from under it, the lightning siax kicked and jumped in a move that meant it could only be Kat at the controls, soaring over the zoid carnage and bounding away over the tops and backs of other zoids, _not a bad idea_ thought Colby and followed suit, launching his 'fox onto the back of a nearby hell kat and knocking it to the ground before springing into the air and firing his thrusters, Colby couldn't help himself, he swung around to look at what kind of carnage he had caused, disappointment, the field behind Colby had vanished, blanketed by a thick cloud of dust, Colby returned his sights to the road ahead and prepared for the first turn madness.

………………

Jhese fought with the controls, trying to regain some stability and prevent his 'dragon from careening into the stands, _not the best way to start a race_ Jhese thought; not something Jhese could have expected but he still believed that it could have been avoided, when Jhese had overtaken their 'wolves David and the others had released the smoke dragon; a trailing cloud of thick smoke that blanketed the track and blinded the trailing competitors, one of whom had seemingly panicked and engaged his booster pack shooting forwards and glancing Jhese on the side before slamming up the back of the leader pack as they entered the first turn. The only thing that Jhese could see as a bonus from the whole exercise had been when Kat had whooped for glee when the flying zoid had crashed through and taken out another lightning siax and a shadow fox in her way before crashing into the ground and suffering a system freeze.

Finally Jhese caught the 'dragon and eased forwards on the acceleration, the massive mechanical legs pumping him back onto the track and into the first turn.

Jhese pulled both controls and grinned as his zoid leaped cleanly over a fallen zaber fang, an obvious victim of a Vulcan laser gun, Jhese then pulled both controls to the left and tapped the thrusters to swoop sideways and avoid being shot down himself, he then backed off the left side power and turned sharply into the second turn, a long sweeping monster that favored zoids of medium size and those with pivoting artillery, and the shadow fox pilots knew it, there were only five in the race including Colby and they were making mincemeat of the leader pack, Jhese hoped that Kat was not in the line of fire, a feeble hope, Jhese knew that Kat would be trying to get a killer fang into Colby's ass.

Finally the sweeping corner became terrain that was more suited to his 'dragons abilities a steep hill that became a cliff towards the top, this was usually where zoids like iron Kongs and rev raptors would catch the speedier cat and wolf zoids as they tried to find a way that would take them over the treacherous hill, even the dark horns and gordos would catch up here, making use of the trails painfully discovered by the smaller more nimble zoids or simply barreling their way to the top, picking off the straggling and struggling as they bulldozed through the dense trees, shrubs and rocks that blocked the smaller zoids progress, Jhese's zoid had this part in the bag, rocking back on its hind legs the 'dragon grabbed the rock, steel talons bit deep and mechanical muscles pulled; hauling the zoid up the steep rock face, this was risky as many of the more nimble zoids would wait for the climbers to start their dash for the lead and pick them off while they waited for the bigger zoids to bulldoze a path, Jhese fired the thrusters and instead of slowly climbing his 'dragon leaped from rock-face to ledge to rock-face faster than even the small hammer rocks could manage, a well aimed shot glanced off the wall beside Jhese and he put the shield up just in time to deflect the next shot that had more luck than the first and flicked it off again as he topped the hill, igniting the thrusters again to pull as much lead as he could from the faster zoids and defiantly move away from the heavier artillery zoids, suddenly a rev raptor sprang from the trees beside the trail and slammed side-on into the 'dragon scoring the electric blue paint with its shoulder mounted blades,

Jhese swept the combat controls with his fingers "_so, you want to trade paint?_" he inquired over the open channel "_red ain't my color so I'll take the silver_" the gogu-dragon grabbed the 'raptor with its fore-claws and continued running on its hind legs, a slower method that forced the 'raptor pilot to compensate, just not quick enough, the 'dragon pulled back and reefed the smaller zoid from its feet and onto its back, then dropped back to all fours and sped away, leaving the rev raptor to its fate.


	12. Chapter 12

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Kat hissed in annoyance, and her lightning siax mirrored her frustration with a metallic growl, some creep had gotten a lucky shot on her as she crested the cliff and had disabled her boosters, she was still one of the faster zoids on the course but she had lost all hopes of staying with the leaders on this lap.

Even as she huffed about her rotten luck she knew that the fastest command wolves and liger units would be catching her before the lap was out. Kat checked the road behind her and spotted the telltale signs that a zoid was fast approaching, she pulled over to the side of the track, hugging the grass in a show of racing etiquette that she hoped might stop the fast approaching zoid from using her as target practice.

All too soon the zoid was within firing range and Kat held her breath until the zoid pulled up alongside her, the zero Schneider.

"_Hey, didn't you used to pilot an attack kat?_" came a familiar voice over the radio

"_Yeah_" Kat responded guardedly, hoping honestly might be the best policy, although with her hot headedness and temper she didn't have the most favorable record.

"_I might not recognize the zoid, but I recognized your piloting style on the start line, Kat isn't it? You might remember helping a pilot in a beat up gun sniper some years back_"

"_Christian?_"

"_Yep_"

………………….

Kat had met Christian about a year and a half ago. He had been attacked by desert bandits while escorting a transporter through their hunting grounds, Christian had been separated from the rest of the transport guards in the attack, after seeing off the bandits he had arrived at the town in his almost totaled gun sniper to find that the transporter had been the only one to make it in, and he had received payment for his shipment and vanished before any of the guards had been able to arrive to collect their cut. With no money Christian had been unable to repair his zoid for another job so had tried traveling to the next town in search of non-zoid work, his bad luck had held and he was attacked just outside the next town by a pack pf rev raptors, Kat had come to his rescue in her slightly less battered attack kat, and together they drove the 'raptors off. Kat had repaired her zoid and left town only after Christian had found work.

……………………..

It seemed karma still owed her a debt.

"_You can fall in behind me if you want, ride my slipstream_" Christian offered "_Only if my girlfriend asks tell her you knew that liger units can't fire backwards or she'll roast my ass_"

"_Deal_" Kat responded.

She fell in behind the liger and the two of them sped off along the track at a pace much more acceptable to Kat's thinking.

……………………

Jhese bounded from rock to rock in what he decided was a great show of the dragon's agility.

This leg of the race seemed to have the sole purpose of breaking zoids, the track ran through a canyon that was barely wide enough to admit a gogulas, it was then narrowed further by massive boulders, making it only big enough for small zoids or the narrowest of medium zoids to zigzag their way through. Jhese had stood in front of the entrance for a moment before deciding on his course of action.

Jumping to the next rock Jhese was momentarily distracted by a gun sniper jumping from rock to rock in much the same way that he was, the distraction almost cost him the race, Shads roared in surprise as the rock that they landed on crumbled and gave way. Thinking quickly Jhese fired his thrusters, propelling the gogu-dragon into a short flight, ended by the boosters overheating, they landed a couple of rocks ahead of the gun sniper.

BACABACABACABACA!

Dirt flew about Shads' feet as the gun sniper opened fire, Jhese was momentarily stumped for a solution and was surprised when Shads once more acted of his own accord, jumping to the canyon wall and springing back at the gun sniper grabbing it in his powerful electro talons before landing and frying it into a system freeze, "Nice work Shads" Jhese praised as he got the electric blue zoid to grab the only detachable weapon off the grounded sniper, a small machine gun, and continued on his way.

………………….

By the time the wolf pack reached the canyon that Jhese and Shads had left some seconds earlier many zoids had entered, although it seemed that this was a section for a thinning of the ranks because some twenty zoids lay shut down on the side of the trail or still where they had fallen. One lightning siax lay draped over a rock and for a fleeting moment Scott thought it might be Kat, but before he voiced his concerns he noticed that this one had sky blue trim rather than Kat's more sinister maroon. The walls were cratered with holes and the floor of the canyon was littered with debris consisting of both rock and zoid parts the place had obviously seen some heavy warfare.

It was Dean who broke the silence "_I wonder how far behind we are?_"

……………….

Still deep within the canyon Kat and Christian had been through the thick of it, a lightning siax with sky blue trim had been leading a large pack of quicker zoids when it fell, off a rock or something, instead of sitting tight until his zoid could be recovered the pilot had decided to cause a road block, firing his twin laser guns at anyone who tried to enter the canyon, when Kat and Christian had arrived a large number of Command Wolves, Attack Kats, Lightning Siax and other zoids were gathered around the entrance trying to shell the downed 'siax into submission, explosions rocked the canyon but the 'siax must have dragged itself under cover with only its twin laser guns exposed to continue firing on the gathered racers.

Christians solution was simple "_Kat, hang tight and turn those guns of yours around_" he then activated the zero Schneider's shields, as he did this the Schneider's mane transformed to create a bladed helmet that wrapped about the zoid's muzzle, Kat watched with some envy as the her dream zoid dropped two blades from its side and they sizzled to life, Christian simply barreled through the massed zoids, his blades simply cleaving away or drilling through any zoid not quick enough to leap aside, Kat followed hard on his tail firing on everyone on her left as her laser guns swung to face the rear, at which point she simply fired off gut instinct at the zoids still left at the entrance to the canyon, the wounded 'siax actually aided them, albeit inadvertently, the shots that did not hit the liger's shields flew past and added to the damage being caused at the entrance, Christian fired his boosters and hauled away from Kat's 'siax quickly catching the Blue Trim 'Siax in his hiding hole, Kat veered to the left as the 'siax flew over her zoid to smash on top of a rock where it lay prone, Kat cringed inwardly, not the prettiest sight.

………………

Cyrus watched the action on the five screens that Thomo had acquired, Cyrus was not game to ask where, when Thomo called "look alive boy, her comes Jhese"

_I knew it _scowled Cyrus_ the old jerk is only interested in his zoid_. Still, Cyrus glanced at the screen to see the Gogu dragon burst from the woods and onto the home stretch. Even he had to admit that the zoid looked awesome, it drew a loud roar from the grandstand as it crossed the start/finish line, its electric blue and silver paint making it look like a lightning bolt, Jhese then pulled into the pit lane where Thomo all but brushed him aside, fixing the small machine gun that Jhese had acquired from an unlucky gun sniper, charging his zoid's energy and releasing him without a word, he then readied everything in anticipation of Kat who charged across the line in hot pursuit of a liger zero Schneider which she parted company with when they entered pit lane. Thomo removed Kat's damaged boosters, replaced them and charged her zoid's energy every bit as quickly as he had with Jhese. Even Cyrus was impressed; the old man was incredible. Kat quickly exited the pit and activated her boosters eager to make up ground she had lost.

………………..

Jhese tried to hug the inside line as he apexed the corner, but he was impeded by zoid debris that hadn't been cleared away, as Jhese struggled with the treacherous footing a liger zero in Jaeger armour powered around the outside of his zoid under full boost_, hmm tempting_ thought Jhese as he considered taking out what was probably the race favorite.

"_Jhese don't you DARE_" roared Kat over the radio, her image popped up beside Jhese's head in the cockpit "_shoot that liger and I will personally put you out of this race!_" Jhese glared at the pilot of the Lightning Siax "_Fine, let the pretty liger win_" Kat's face softened "_the pilot saved my ass Jhese_" Jhese scowled a moment as the liger pulled away from his zoid, then he let it go with a sigh "_thank you Jhese_" Kat said "_I didn't want to shoot you down but one good deed, you know…_" startled Jhese craned his head about as Shads exited the sweeping corner, sure enough a lightning siax with maroon trim was bearing down on him.

Kat.


	13. Chapter 13

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Colby charged through the forest, actually reveling in his zoids agility as he swerved around trees in a slalom fashion, he was actually enjoying running this zoid just for the sake of running this zoid. The feeling was short lived as he came upon the wolf pack ahead of him. AHEAD of HIM.

Dean reacted first as Colby boosted from the trees to their right, hauling his zoid to the left, past a tree, to vacate the spot just before Colby could slash him with his Shadow Fox XS's strike laser claw, Scott and Flint reacted a split second later hurdling the shadow fox and splitting apart as they hit the ground, as one the three V-wolves ignited their zabat boosters, trying to gain distance from Colby and his deadly zoid, but Colby fluently turned and closed the gap with his zoid's superior speed, the three V-wolves activated their smoke units, hoping that Colby would hit a tree in the haze, but that plan died almost instantly as the trio of 'wolves pursued by a 'fox burst out of the trees onto the home straight, Colby accelerated to charge clear of the haze just as the four zoids crossed the start/finish line, he popped up next to Flint's zoid and wore two shots from another, Scott, just as Colby veered towards Scott to extract vengeance he was rammed in the side by Dean, forcing him into pit lane. Colby roared in fury as the auto pit brake hauled his zoid back to the pit speed limit, Colby howled as the three 'wolf zoids vanished around the first corner. A cry echoed by his Shadow Fox.

………………….

By using drafting Jhese and Kat had finally caught up with Christian's liger only to find it under attack from a pride of Hell Kats, the smaller feline zoids were ramming the bigger liger, trying to trip it up. Christian was holding up rather well, considering his zoid hadn't tripped up over the attack kats.

"_Four_" stated Kat after a quick head count "_aarrrgh! I have to help him again._" Jhese sighed and Shads admonished him with a soft growl "_Fine, we'll help_" Kat's surprise rang in the radio "_You will? Thank you, Jhese. Thank you_" Jhese eased off his boosters and swung wide, allowing Kat's Lightning Siax to take the lead, she had the superior range of firepower with her double laser gun. Kat aimed and fired, and hit one of the attack kats, a glancing blow that did little to slow it down.

Suddenly the four attack kats disappeared from view.

"_Damn optic camouflage!_" cursed Kat loudly.

"_Why didn't you wait until we reached a more accurate range?_" Jhese demanded even knowing that Kat couldn't wait that long and neither could Christian "_just fire to either side of his zoid, not on him. That should stop them ramming him until we get there_"

Kat opened fire, shredding the ground on either side of the blue liger. Jhese wished he had been able to build the CAS armour for speed, but he didn't have time for that or anything else besides training and familiarizing himself with the gogu-dragon unit and its abilities, Jhese just had to hang in behind Kat and wait his turn.

**BABOOOM!!!!**

The ground shook and exploded beside the Liger zero Jaeger, three attack kats re-appeared as their optic camouflage units, well the whole zoids really, were destroyed by the blast the, fourth attack kat appeared as Shads ran over it, Shads grabbed the hapless zoid in his electro-talons and shut it down, Jhese stared wildly up at the fast approaching cliff-

"_INCOMING!_" He yelled and the three zoids scattered moments before the next explosion shook the track, once again Jhese looked to the cliff for the source of the attacks, there up on the cliff face stood an Iron Kong, the big ape shaped zoid was bigger in mass than all three zoids at the base of the cliff, and was armed with what could only be a Buster Cannon.

"_Buster Cannon?_" yelped Christian

"_Only the most devastating weapon money can buy_" Jhese explained

"_Ah_"

Jhese tried to kick his brain into gear, none of their zoids possessed a weapon that could match the range of that Buster cannon, but even an Iron Kong could only carry the power for maybe ten shots, there was no way he was planning to destroy every zoid that passed this way, he must be holding the pass, trying to allow his own team-mates to catch the leaders, which did not help matters because it reminded Jhese that time was against them.

**BABOOOM!**

Dust flew as the laser beam tore through the ground.

"_Use the dust as cover!_" yelled Christian from the zero-Jaeger "_we need more dust!_"

Jhese knew that dust could only be gained with the loss of ammo, what they needed was,

"_Speed!_" Kat cried "_split up, he can't hit all of us, and he can't carry enough ammo to try too hard!_" the three speedy zoids shot off in three directions, fanning out and using the cliffs natural curves to cover from the devastating blasts of the buster cannon.

"_We need to close with that thing if we want any chance of winning_" a rev raptor ran past Jhese as he dove for cover, once more avoiding the buster cannon fire, _probably his team-mate _Jhese reasoned.

"_Follow that Raptor!_" yelled Christian as he urged the blue Liger forward.

Jhese and Kat propelled their zoids to either side of the 'raptor as it charged towards the cliff.


	14. Chapter 14

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The wolf pack charged up the hill that Jhese, Christian and Kat were negotiating. Using an obscure, well covered track, the lack of conflict had enabled them to make up good time; they were less than a second behind the leaders.

But the tracks good cover also made it too tight and bendy to utilize their thrusters or even trade the lead.

Dean cursed this, it meant that any trouble ahead would be his, and his zoid would be the first to take damage if the path thinned.

The path did not thin.

The trees became non-existent as the trio emerged into a freshly cleared meadow.

Trap!!!

The forest clearers emerged from the shadows, blocking the paths and causing the 'pack to slide to a halt.

The light gleamed off the wicked curving scythes of the rev shinobi, off the intimidating arsenals of the iron Kongs and off the familiar armour of the Koning Wolf XV.

"_Hello, boys_" greeted the wolf's pilot "_still playing these zoid games are you? Well, now you may consider yourselves hostages_"

Dean, Scott and Flint turned to escape back into the forest, hoping to disappear behind a curtain of smoke but four more rev shinobi stepped into their path, blocking the last chance.

A Shadow Fox leaped over the 'shinobi zoids one that could only be Colby "_Well well; isn't this nice, three little puppies th-_"

"_Can it Colby, know your place, or do I need to remind you?_" snarled the 'wolf pilot

"_Ooooh_" crowed Dean "_Colby ain't in charge around here fellas, what is your place Colby? Boot licker?_" Scott slapped his face with his hand, he knew Dean was packing fear, he also knew what Dean was planning, and they were going to be destroyed if this didn't work.

"_SHUT UP DEAN!_" roared Colby, and his zoid threw back its head and howled, a piercing scream thatsent chills down the spine of everyone present, for a zoid, that scream was filled with bloodlust and anger, so much anger.

The Shadow Fox charged at Dean's Command Wolf, Dean backpedaled as fast as the 'wolf would move trying to put distance between it and Colby's Shadow Fox, but to no avail, the Shadow Fox was simply too fast. With lightning speed Colby was on him, the two zoids clawing and snapping at each other hit the Iron Kong which simply scruffed the smaller zoids and hoisted them clear of the ground and away from each other.

"_That was dumb Colby, now you will have to be punished for disobeying once again_" the Koning Wolf pilot growled.

"_Screw you Darius!!!_" howled Colby and pivoted his Shadow Fox's Vulcan laser gun to point at the Iron Kong's head, _point blank_ Dean realized and followed suit, the two guns fired simultaneously, blasting the Iron Kong's head back on its massive shoulders, the enormous zoid jerked involuntarily, or maybe it was just the pilot, either way during that jerk both zoids escaped the behemoth's grasp, Colby instantly attacked Darius in the chaos that erupted when Scott, Flint and Dean started firing on anything that fell between their crosshairs explosions and smoke quickly filled the small clearing and the three Command Wolves quickly made their way free of the trap and back into the race, putting as much distance between themselves and Darius's team.

………………….

Turns out the Rev Raptor that Jhese, Kat and Christian decided to tail was, in fact, the Kong's teammate, the buster cannon fired it's last eight shots in desperation, trying to knock off any one of the three zoids surrounding the 'raptor, but the Lightning Siax, Zero Jaeger and Gogu Dragon clung on with grim determination, frustrating the Kong's every shot.

In a last ditch effort the Iron Kong charged the group in an attempt to smash the three opponents in close range, Kat accelerated strait under the 'Kong as it leapt at the group, Christian simply swerved to the side, outside even the 'Kong's impressive reach and the 'raptor simply wasn't a target, that left Jhese; who was bringing up the rear. By the time Jhese reached the Kong it had landed and decided on tackling the Gogu Dragon, Jhese lifted his zoid to its hind legs, to run upright, and activated the Electro-talons, the claws sizzling with energy, sparks arcing between the metal claws, the 'Kong braced itself to grapple the smaller zoid and Jhese kicked the thrusters as Shads launched himself through the air the maneuver landed them square on the metal gorilla's head, the Gogu Dragon reached down and scored the 'Kong's armour with his talon as he leaped clear of its reach and dashed away with the others, motoring for the canyon.

……………......

As the smoke and dust cleared Darius looked around, the Iron Kong lay on the ground to Darius's right, several shots at point blank, plus the damage it must have suffered during the fire fight must have frozen its combat systems, Darius growled in disgust, the pilot of the 'Kong would have to be punished for letting the Command Wolves go of course, but something else bothered Darius, it took him a moment to realize what.

Colby was gone.


	15. Chapter 15

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Jhese hated to admit it but the Rev Raptor pilot was good, even though his zoid had no thrusters he managed to stay in the group's slipstream without getting shot, Jhese had tried once or twice, and Kat fired on him every now and again, but nobody had really put any effort into it.

Now Jhese wished he had, once again a rev raptor had scratched his paint, the little rogue had decided to try and take Jhese down from behind, he had activated either thrusters, or some form of overdrive and had gained suddenly, catching Jhese napping, it had attempted to cut him down with the fearsome scythes that made the Rev Raptors a favorite small close range zoid, luckily Shads had noticed the attack and had avoided the brunt of the attack by swerving and jumping, he had then kicked out at the 'raptor, pushing it away and gaining enough distance to hit it with his electro-talons, Jhese had felt a huge surge of relief as the 'raptor hit the ground, how far would he have made it in this race if Shads hadn't acted independently, it was independent, Jhese was sure of it.

As Jhese pondered this question the three zoids entered the canyon for the second time, despite his distraction Jhese noticed the debris of ruined zoids parts, but being a rather proficient mechanic Jhese also noticed that the shrapnel had come off many different zoids. The canyon itself also looked different to when Jhese had passed through, the rocks that had blocked the way had mostly been reduced to gravel or dust, the canyon itself seemed to have expanded and the walls were riddled with holes from both bullets and beam ammunition. "_What happened here?_"

"_Yeah, it wasn't this bad when we left it_" replied a somewhat awed Kat.

"_We did our fair share of damage_" Christian chuckled "_But this is like a war happened here_"

As they continued through the canyon, they passed more and more extreme levels of damage, some fierce fighting had definitely gone down in this canyon, with some evil fire power being used, at one point one side of the canyon simply wasn't; a gaping hole where there should have been nearly forty foot of solid rock, a series of craters that were only an inch in diameter, but Jhese could have sworn he saw pinpricks of daylight when he passed right next to them.

…………………….

Cyrus watched all this from the pit bunker.

He had decided a short while ago that this race was simply insane and he would never risk one of his zoids competing in it. He couldn't believe how many zoids had been reduced to ruins; he couldn't understand how zoids would agree to this madness, he glanced at Thomo; who sat beside him, scanning the monitors for anything that would help the team, Thomo looked up and Cyrus realized his glance had become a stare.

"You look distracted boy" Thomo stated "Your teammates don't need your distractions; they need your guidance and leadership. This race is all about pride you know, the winning zoids are treated as the champions every bit as much as their pilots you know…I've watched this event every year since it started twelve years ago, I missed it keenly during the two years of Back-draft wars, and I can't believe I'm admitting it; but I watch the winners circle at the end of every race…I think the zoids understand that they are being treated as true life forms, at these times I get my greatest inspirations, it's like my zoids are feeding images to my brain" Thomo shuffled a bit, seemingly uncomfortable with his speech, but, surprisingly, he had put Cyrus's mind at ease, he could focus now.

Cyrus returned his attention to the screen.

Okay, that was insanely short, but it kinda had to happen that way. The next chapter will, I hope, make up for it though.

Yeah, so the story has finally come to the point where I am writing it just before you read it, so things may be a little slower in coming, I am really sorry about that, but hey now I can start thanking people for their help and inspiration.

First thanks goes to Randomcat 23; such a friendly helpful person makes it worth the lack of sleep to write a profitless endevour.


	16. Chapter 16

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Darius stared out over the battlefield from the cockpit of his Koning Wolf, the zoid's white paint made it easy to distinguish from the other zoids around him, all decked out with the Back-draft organization's colors of black with red and orange trim.

But the zoids around him weren't Darius's main concern, they were simply cannon fodder, the zoids standing at the top of the hill were his problem; the Blitz team.

Three zoids stood on the crest of a hill, only a mile from Darius; he didn't even need binoculars to make them out, Leena Toros, the pilot of a Gunsniper Weasel, known as the Leena special, a zoid that was made for bombardment; gattling cannons, missile launchers and lasers bristled off a zoid capable of taking out ten or twenty zoids in one explosive attack, Brad Hunter, a mercenary who couldn't seem to be bought away from the Blitz team for any price; Darius knew, he had secretly tried to buy the mercenary away from his team in secret, Brad had made no secret of punching Darius in the face, his Shadow Fox was the last payment he had taken from a member of the Back-draft, a fact that still stuck in Dr. Laon's craw, and standing between them the Liger Zero, currently in its Panzer armour, a lion shaped nightmare of a zoid that could change its armour to suit almost any style of combat, its current armour was khaki green and sported twin hybrid cannons; two beam guns that could drill twin holes in almost any armour or even E-shields, the zoid was also covered on missile, grenade and rocket launchers, it and the Gun-sniper were the reasons that Darius had invested the last of his money in the small army of zoids around him, cannon fodder, the Liger Zero could also change to Jaeger armour for high speed battles and Schneider armour for close range fighting, this zoid had taken its pilot Bit Cloud to victory in the Royal Cup, and many wins in group S since, the pilot himself Bit Cloud was widely regarded as a hack, but Darius knew better, the liger wasn't the only zoid he had seen Bit pilot, Bit's own talent was not to be under estimated, people who did that often found themselves in a systems freeze, no matter what Bit Piloted, Bit was just good.

Darius called the attack and the three hundred strong zoid army charged at the hill, preparation for this moment had been intense; Darius had scrounged every last penny the Back-draft could get, legitimate or otherwise, buying zoids and mercenaries to pilot them, making sure that outside help would be too late to rescue the team and organizing the army to block the team's path. As the black zoids neared the hill the liger unit unleashed its first attack; twin rays of destructive light drew twin lines through their ranks, taking at least twenty zoids out of the battle, the zoid fired again and more zoids collapsed in functionless heaps, even from his position Darius could see the zoid's joints working hard to stabilize after the massive attacks, Bit then initiated the Big Bang attack, or mega bomb, briefly Darius wondered as the pods that would launch tones of mass explosives at his troops, he wondered how they would feel realizing they had been hired as nothing more than cannon fodder, a disposable wall of life that Darius would use to run the Liger Zero and Gun-sniper out of ammo before engaging them in close range combat, the sky lit up as hundreds of missiles arced through the air to destroy masses of zoids at the bottom of the hill, Darius winced, he must have lost nearly three hundred zoids in that attack, the liger then discarded its armour, jettisoning it before its insane heat could damage the liger itself, the Gun-sniper and Shadow fox took over from there, holding the heavily reduced army back with their own fire power.

Darius ordered in the zabats; hoping to destroy the liger without any armour, he didn't count on it though, and the reason quickly showed itself, catapulting from the Hover Cargo that the liger was heading for and accelerating beyond mach speeds, the Raynos, a green flying zoid capable of mach 3.3, originally developed as an anti redler zoid the Raynos had proved more than a match for the imperial dragon type zoid, able to out fly, out gun and out maneuver the redler in every way, the Blitz team had bought theirs to deal with zabats after the Back-draft had stolen the Liger Zero using a zabat swarm. Darius wished he could have bought something better but funds simply didn't allow for it. The Blitz team and battle commission had all but broken the Back-draft Organization after the Royal Cup.

The Raynos sped towards the zabats, spiraling, dodging and firing as it flew, then simply blew past the zabats at full speed, tearing off wings and stabilizers with a well timed sonic boom, more than three quarters of the zabat army fell from the sky, Darius watched heartlessly as pilots tried to eject, only to find that the boosters on the canopy didn't fire Darius simply did not need pilots claiming that they had been used as cannon fodder, besides, the lack of parachutes would make the Raynos pilot stop firing on any zoids, he would leave the battle field with luck.

Most of his troops had been destroyed by the time Darius saw the liger return, the white armour, the basic Zero Armour, this was a surprise to Darius, he was expecting the Jaeger or Schneider armour, but Bit Cloud had defeated the Berserk Fury using the Zero armour.

Darius waited until all his troops had been destroyed before entering the battle ground, followed by the four most talented pilots he could find with a grudge against the Blitz team; Volta had worked as an officer and warrior pilot for the Back-draft he had lost face and money at the hands of the Blitz team on numerous occasions, he sat in his new model zaber fang AT, a red and black tiger type zoid that had optic camouflage and an upgraded version of his stake grenade launcher, a weapon designed to deal with highly maneuverable zoids such as the Liger Zero. The Fooma team were Back-draft's shinobi style ambush specialists, used to piloting zoids such as war sharks and other less than honest zoids, they had even piloted Genosaurs in a failed attack on Vega Obscura in the Berserk Fury, today they piloted a variety of zaber fangs; a zaber fang GA, designed to continually spray foes with high caliber ammunition, a zaber fang CQ, designed for the sole purpose of close quarter fighting, it had upgraded fangs and claws and an E-shield, a rarity on zabers, the final zoid being piloted by the Fooma team was a brand new model zaber fang with anti aircraft weaponry, homing missiles that could travel at mach 3.5, perfect for gunning down that annoying Raynos.

The tiger type zoids and their 'wolf leader stalked towards the Blitz team, each had a job to do and each had been drilled in how to do that job to the best of their abilities, the 'GA reached firing position first and began attempting to mow all three ground zoids down with its gattling attacks, but it was outgunned rather quickly by Leena's Gun-sniper, Darius sighed in frustration, these hadn't been the pilots he had intended to hire; Jack Cisco had laughed at his offers of payment, Brad Hunter had punched him out Captain Stoller had gone a-wall and Pierce no longer seemed interested in battling zoids. So he was left with four hack pilots to back him up, not exactly confidence boosting.

The Shadow fox and the Liger zero had traveled much faster than Darius's team and hit them before they reached the bottom of the hill, the Shadow fox and Liger Zero had both hit the 'CQ and taken it down before the other four zoids could land a blow, the 'AA zaber had finally locked onto the Raynos and began firing into the sky, Darius had hoped that the Blitz team would try to rescue the Raynos and be distracted enough for him to take out the Liger, but once again the team surprised him, simply letting the missiles fly after the Raynos.

Volta reacted quickly, firing his arsenal; ten rockets fired up into the air, rockets filled with a load of twenty heavy, sharpened metal stakes, these metal stakes would be released to hurtle back to earth, hopefully cutting down the Blitz team zoids, or at least damaging them or slowing them down.

The rockets drew a lazy arc in the sky before blowing apart and dropping their dangerous loads, the stakes plummeted, gaining speed as they hurtled towards the ground, but they never made it.

The Raynos rocketed through the cloud of stakes; dodging them as easily as if they had been miles apart rather than feet, trailing the Raynos came the anti-air missiles, hitting the stakes and detonating, the air was rent with explosions, the force of which blew many of the stakes far off course, landing many meters away from the Blitz team zoids, the Fooma pilot in the AA 'zaber panicked and fired thoughtlessly after the Raynos; the Raynos pilot executed an unimaginably tight turn, whipping the zoid past the missiles and back towards the battlefield, Darius watched in awe as the green zoid rocketed past, no more than inches from clipping the ground with its feet, weaving in and out of his team in the same way he had with the stakes, too late Darius saw why; the missiles followed.

Darius hauled his Koning Wolf to the side narrowly avoiding being hit by any of the missiles, his team clearly still had their sights on the Raynos, and were pounded by the following firepower, the four zoids collapsed in smoldering heaps and the Raynos quite happily flew off to lose the other missiles that still trailed behind it, Darius now believed that he would succeed. He glanced around his teammates, _FOOLS_ he cursed, _worse than fools._

He looked about wildly and realized that the Blitz team's ground zoids now stood nearby, waiting to see what he would do; he had no hope of defeating all three any one of them would be a challenge, well maybe not so much that trigger happy psycho Leena Toros, but Bit and Brad were formidable, then he realized his one opportunity, challenge Bit to one on one combat, maybe he could get them far enough away from the others for an escape, Darius mustered up his courage, yes, he would beat that arrogant fool Bit Cloud and expose him for the fraud he was.

"_I challenge you, Bit Cloud; warrior to warrior!_" Darius yelled with every ounce of nerve he could manage.

"_Warrior_?" replied Bit with surprise and anger ringing in his voice "_you did nothing while people died; you did nothing while we took your team down, and you call yourself a _WARRIOR? _You're nothing more than a two bit coward!_"

Darius had to admit, from a personality like Bit Cloud, those words stung, but Bit wasn't done yet.

"_I'll take you on alright, just to prove that a _COWARD_ like you doesn't deserve to pilot a zoid, and yes, I will take you on alone_" The white Liger Zero roared a challenge at Darius's Koning Wolf; which seemed to quail under the Liger's glare,_ impossible _Darius snarled at himself, _zoids aren't alive_.

With his newfound resolve Darius fired his missiles at the Liger and ran past him for the wooded area, he got only several hundred feet before he had to hit the brakes to avoid crashing into the Liger Zero, _impossible_ he'd left the Liger behind, yet there it was, doubt clawed at Darius, he turned his zoid only to find the white zoid blocking that direction too, Darius's mind reeled, once more he turned his zoid, to once again see the white zoid, this time sitting on its haunches.

Darius fainted.

……………

…And woke up once again in the cockpit of his Koning Wolf.

That battle had cost him big, three weeks in jail before he was busted out, the remainder of his money gone, and his father too, things had just fallen apart for the Back-draft Organization after the Royal Cup, Dr. Laon had left because they put Leena Toros in danger, a lovesick fool and traitor, Vega Obscura had disappeared with the Berserk Fury, Altail had been put in deep security and his father, the Count, had gone on the run, Darius had heard that the count had gone to some remote town that still smoldered with Imperial pride and deep loathing for anything they deemed Republican, amazing, in Darius's mind, that one small community could still call themselves Imperial, and hold the old ways with fanatical enthusiasm, they had missed the thousand or more years of peace since the legendary Guardian Force had bought the world together in one big group hug, the count had persuaded these people to leave their isolated crater to bring the Imperial way back to planet Zi, by force if necessary.

This community had sparked a war that would last two years before every one of them had died with the Imperial prayer on their lips.

The Count had been found amongst the dead, mad with grief, Darius had sought vengeance against the Blitz team; and failed.

Now he sat under the canopy of his upgraded Koning Wolf XV. During his time in Jail Darius had discovered that the Count had built the Back-draft Organization in layers, and he had only scratched the surface of its funding, this new zoid was the result of that funding, it was faster, stronger, more powerful in both short and long range combat, and out-performed the Liger Zero in every way, according to the statistics.

Darius now had the zoid to beat the Liger Zero and the three Gogulas Giga Cannons that stood behind him ensured he had the backing to beat the Blitz team.

Now he just had to get their attention.

Sure, he wanted to fulfill his father's dreams of conquering planet Zi, but revenge came first.

The four zoids now stood at the exit to the canyon, demolishing any zoid that passed through, getting to the exit had been a blast, literally; the three Gogulas didn't fit through the canyon, so they had excavated it, with explosions and bullets.

The Blitz team didn't disappoint, Darius had been waiting only a minute or so when a familiar white zoid topped the cliff wall.


	17. Chapter 17

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY**

"_Well well, the mighty Bit Cloud in the Liger Zero, my I should be quivering shouldn't I?_" Darius sneered "_this time you will not get the better of me, you are over Cloud. My Koning Wolf can out perform your Liger on any level_"

The pilot of the Liger Zero pilot remained silent.

"_Do you feel the power of my Koning Wolf? Does my new strength since our last encounter leave you lost for words?_" Darius was starting to get upset with the 'Zero pilots lack of response to his intimidation techniques.

Finally the Liger Zero pilot spoke.

"_Uhh…have we met?_"

Darius nearly tripped his zoid over in surprise.

"_WHAT?!_"

Darius could feel his mind reeling again, how did Bit have this power over him? How did anyone have this power over him? He pushed back the waves of nausea and composed himself; this was the person who had destroyed his father the Count.

He had to pay.

"_You may not remember me warrior, but I haven't forgotten you_" Darius sneered upon finding his courage.

"_Oh, I get it, you're from the Tiger's team; although you don't have a Zaber Fang…have you guys joined the Back-draft or something?_"

This was not going the way Darius had planned at all, so he fell back on what he was good at; ranting.

"_I will make you PAY this time Bit Cloud, you may have bought down my father, but the Back-draft will ALWAYS have a count. Now it is time to avenge myself and take you down. Bit Cloud I challenge you to a duel!_"

The Liger Zero pilot was silent for a moment, then burst out laughing "_What, no dark judge? No threats? No kidnappings? Are you SURE you're Back-draft? Are you even in class S? Why don't you wait until the Zoids Darby finishes, and then you can have a go, that is if you think you're up to it pal_"

Something in Darius snapped, his fear of Bit Cloud vanished and was replaced by anger. Heedless of any advise, if there ever was any, he charged up the wall at the Liger Zero, Bit watched as his 'Wolf became unable to run, he then calmly backed away as the zoid scrabbled over the edge of the canyon wall, waiting for the 'Wolf to make the first move.

Darius realized that he had been tricked, no not tricked, trapped by his own stupidity, the top of the canyon was only twenty feet wide, less in some areas; his Koning Wolf would need great balance to move, let alone maneuver up here, the Liger Zero had that balance. Darius rushed the Liger, hoping to push it off the side with a shoulder charge; the Liger Zero hauled to the side, kicking off with its golden claws as it dodged away from the charging zoid, at the last second its front leg grabbed the cliff edge and swinging it up behind, a daredevil move, a Bit Cloud move.

Darius swung his zoid about; one hundred and eighty degrees, scrabbling to stop and stay on the canyon top, finally achieving stability he faced Bit "_that was impressive Bit, may I call you Bit? Impressive, but you made a mistake; you should have dislodged me while you had the chance, and now my gogulas zoids will blow you to pieces!_" the gogulas giga cannons roared, twin buster cannons mounted to two enormous zoids, even the 'Ultimate X' Liger Zero couldn't compete with that much raw power on its own. Dust enveloped Darius's zoid obscuring the Liger from view, but Darius didn't worry he knew that that whole end of the canyon top had been blown away, with the white Liger on it. The dust swirled around Darius's zoid as he sat silently; comfortable in the knowledge that he had avenged his father's downfall and death.

///////////////

Ha! This is the part where I tell you that I am going to leave you here for a good fortnight while I decide how to continue what is turning into a sleep consuming monster...okay its not that bad, I'm mostly leaving you with what believe is a cliff hanger because I am an ASSHOLE!

Have a nice fourtnight!!!


	18. Chapter 18

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The wind whistled through many canyons on planet Zi, some were even rumored to sing soulful melodies to those with enough time to listen to them; Darius sat in comfortable silence, listening to the tunes of the winds as they whistled from the back of the canyon to sweep over his zoid and into the swirling clouds of dust, slowly the breeze pushed the dust away from the Liger Zero's last location, the zoid was no longer there, which made sense since the entire plateau was now just a memory. _Good riddance_ thought Darius _it's about time someone fixed you._

Twin shots fired out of the dust and struck the Koning Wolf in the shoulder and face "What the Hell?" Darius screamed as his zoid scrambled desperately for purchase and stability. The wind continued to blow and push the dust beyond the bounds of the canyon, revealing to Darius the source of the shelling.

The Liger Zero was unharmed and had fired from the head of one of the giant blue dinosaur's heads. Darius couldn't believe it, _how? _The Gogulas thrashed, trying in vain to dislodge the white zoid, it spun and stamped and finally crashed into the canyon wall, and the other Gogulas. Try as he might the pilot of the Gogulas could not throw the white Liger. The white Liger then added to the chaos by firing on the second Gogulas and clawing at the head of the one it was perched upon, balancing on the thrashing zoid as easily as a bird in a tree.

Darius gathered his courage once more and leaped into the fray, bouncing off the broad back of one of the titanic zoids and tackling the Liger Zero to the ground. Both zoids hit hard and bounced apart, the Liger Zero gained its feet first and quickly avoided a foot almost as big as its whole body. How Bit Cloud managed to keep track of everything on the battlefield was a mystery, but it was one of the things that made hi great, he was almost impossible to surprise.

Getting his own zoid on its feet Darius engaged the Koning Wolf XV's Razor Charge weaponry; the wolf's mane pivoted to form forward facing blades, the claw extenders snapped down over the golden claws and the wolf's unicorn horn slid down the forehead to create an extra element to the arsenal of forward facing spikes, this setup was modeled off the Zero Schneider and designed to out-perform the Liger Zero and all its CAS forms on every level.

Darius charged at Bit Cloud who avoided the attack cleanly and just as cleanly disappeared as a Gogulas tail hit the spot where his Liger had been only a split second before, surprise resistant. Darius charged again and once more Bit dodged cleanly, only this time the Liger Zero counterattacked; the Liger Zero struck upwards with its golden fore claw, catching the 'wolf under the chin in a sort of upper cut, Darius's cockpit shuddered with the force, luckily for him the blow had been half-arsed as the Liger Zero was already away from his zoid and dodging another giant Gogulas foot, the Koning wolf's blades had worn the brunt of it. Darius tracked Bit as the Liger Zero danced and ducked about the feet of the two enormous zoids, then taking aim fired with the 'Wolf's short range missiles, the Liger pivoted on a dime and shot three of the projectiles from the air with its twin shock cannons, only narrowly misjudging the fourth, it then sidestepped the remaining missile and boosted away; seeming to ride the blast wave itself. The two Gogulas opened fire with their short range firearms, and Darius added his own twin shock cannons and finally the Liger backed up to the canyon wall, trapped but still snarling defiance. Even Darius had to admit it had been an effort, the Liger Zero was exceptional in anyone's judgment and he wasn't even sure if his zoid could outperform it, the data on the Liger Zero had to be inaccurate, a concept best revisited later, right now a score needed settling.

Bit Cloud had zero options left, he was penned into a corner with two Gogulas zoids and the Koning Wolf from hell all pointing cannons, missiles and other equally painful things in the direction of him and his partner, the Liger Zero.

Stupid; he'd been stupid.

Brad wasn't available due to other commitments, but Bit liked Naomi Flugal too much to curse her for stealing Brad for the day. Jamie was grounded because the track was a no fly zone to aerial zoids with the exception of approved video Raynos. And Leena, god bless her was spending some quality time with her father Doctor Steve Toros blowing their latest winnings on the mother of all shopping sprees.

The lack of backup hadn't stopped Bit and his Liger Zero partner from charging in to play hero though.

Bit scratched his unruly blonde hair, he was at a loss on what to say or do; and his partner seemed silent on the matter. "What do you think partner?" asked Bit; some people found it strange that Bit spoke to his zoid as though it would answer, for his part Bit found it strange that they didn't talk to their own zoids, the Liger let out an incredulous rumbling chuckle. " You're right pal" Bit replied with a smile "better to die like a Liger than to live like a pussy" Bit gripped the familiar and comforting controls that seemed to fit his hands oh-so-perfectly and prepared to charge.

Darius prepared to fire.

Okay, I know some of you were probably looking forwards to two weeks silence from me, but events have forced my hand a bit early, so the asshole charade thingy has been dropped and some updades will be appearing soon, hope you enjoy them.


	19. Chapter 19

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The three high speed zoids cannoned out of the canyon; a lightning siax, a zero Jaeger and an electric blue dinosaur type zoid that reminded Darius of the Back-draft's Berserk Fury.

Shads swerved, just in time to avoid colliding with the Koning Wolf and Jhese recognized it in that instant as THE KONING WOLF, sadly this distraction prevented him from avoiding the leg of a massive Gogulas Giga Cannon zoid; he slammed into it, hard, causing the zoid to buckle and fire high of the Liger Zero and blast the canyon wall to dust. Kat pounced and the Lightning Siax grabbed onto the side of the second Gogulas and began firing on the zoid's head. Christian shot past, avoiding the chaos in his Zero-Jaeger, only to hit the brakes and swing the blue liger in a one eighty degree slide, racing back to join Kat and Jhese in their fight with the two gogulas zoids but pulled up short to avoid being hit by a Koning Wolf.

"I don't know how you changed armour so quickly Cloud, but I will still blow your zoid to pieces" roared the pilot of the Koning Wolf.

Christian doesn't understand all of this, but no-one is blowing his zoid to pieces. The blue liger surged forwards and leaped at the Koning Wolf, its claws glowing with the golden energy that powered the strike laser claw.

Darius smoothly pulled his Koning Wolf out of the attacks path and struck back with his own fore claws, sending the blue liger and its pilot crashing to the ground; the liger rolled with the momentum and regained its feet, then opened fire on its enemy with its Vulcan lasers. _Ha! Too easy!_ Darius crowed. Bit must have been hit by the Gogulas' cannons and was still groggy; Darius could take him out now, with ease, he would not be denied this victory; he glanced around to survey the battle. _No!_ He silently screamed, a white liger was there in the heat of the battle raging against the two Gogulas Giga Cannons. _So who is the fool in the blue Liger?_ Darius wondered _No matter, he will suffer before I destroy Bit Cloud once and for all._

Christian rocketed to the side as the Koning Wolf XV charged at his zoid, barely evading the blades around the white 'wolf's head, his partner snarled and Christian snarled right back _I thought you were an ultimate-X_.

Jhese and Kat were having problems of their own; the Gogulas were simply too big to take down with conventional attacks, Jhese had staggered one behemoth when he hit it full tilt, but two or three more hits like that and Shads would be a crumpled mess, the armour was too thick to shoot and even Kat seemed stumped, the only joy for the moment seemed to be that everyone was too close for the buster cannons to be used. Kat dodged a sweeping tail and raced up the pockmarked canyon wall then hit her boosters and launched off the canyon wall and onto the Gogulas' face where she clung on with her zoid's metal claws, the enormous zoid stopped at once, clearly the pilot had no intention of recreating the havoc caused when Jhese Christian and Kat had interrupted their fight with Bit Cloud, he wasn't going to fall for it.

Bit watched the Lightning Siax run up the wall and grab onto the Gogulas' face, _not a bad idea_ Bit mused "whadda ya think partner?" the white liger rumbled his agreement and the two turned and raced for the nearest canyon wall "just need a little more OOOMF!" shouted Bit as the liger jumped away from the wall, boosters blazing like rocket engines, the Liger Zero's claws pulsed with energy and the attack struck the Gogulas square in the face; staggering it backwards, Bit then fired the twin shock cannons; smacking the massive zoid twice more on the muzzle, the titan fell backwards hitting the other Gogulas with a loud bang, then both zoids lost all control.

Jhese was in a forest of giant limbs, all of which seemed intent on flattening the Gogu dragon, he whipped the controls left and right; trying to avoid being crushed, leaping over sweeping tails and weaving under stamping legs, Jhese imagined that from the outside this probably looked funny, the two massive Gogulas thrashing about and the miniature Gogu dragon trying to avoid them _the tarantula dance_ Jhese remembered; some villagers believed that a frenzied dance could allow a person to sweat out spider poison. One of the massive feet crashed down in front of the 'dragon, Shads dug in his claws; screeching to a halt, mere inches from the colossal limb, giving Jhese a close-up view of the giants leg, his quick eyes locked onto a possible key to winning this fight, he pushed forward on the controls and Shads latched on to the Gogulas' leg, the electric blue zoid was then hoisted off the ground as the giant took a step, Jhese directed and willed Shads to reach for a loose relay wire hanging just below the Gogulas' thigh, the zoid caught the relay with one talon tip and as gently as possible when holding onto the leg of a thrashing colossus, pulled it down into the grasp of all four electro-talons, with one arm still straining to hold the leg of the stamping monster zoid.

"_**ELECTRO-TALON!**_" Jhese roared and the entire Gogulas lit up like a Christmas tree; sparks shot from joints and stabilizers as the currents ripped their way around the zoid, arcing from metal surfaces, smoke began pouring from cooling vents. Finally the Gogu-dragon released its hold and the giant zoid toppled forwards to crash with loud finality to the turf. Jhese couldn't believe it; he and Shads had just taken down a zoid ten times their size. Shads yowled a warning and Jhese pulled to the side, barely avoiding Kat's attack.

"Did you even LOOK before you did that? I was on top of that zoid when you pulled that stunt. MORON!!!" her Lightning Siax roared fiercely in agreement "DAMN YOU, THINK!!!"


	20. Chapter 20

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

"Hey, I could use a little help up here!" called a familiar voice, the owner of the voice appeared on the view-screen in the Gogu-Dragon's cockpit "now would be nice guys" Jhese froze; Bit Cloud, winner of the Royal Cup, war hero, class S champion and idol to millions of wanna be zoid warriors was asking Kat and he for help "Yeah help…NOW!!!" The white zoid, the Ultimate X Liger Zero, clung to the face of the remaining Gogulas, all four sets of claws glowing fiercely as they gripped the bigger zoid's top and bottom jaws holding them together, the strain on the zoid must have been incredible, Jhese surged forward beside Kat who fired her double lasers as her Lightning Siax ran, aiming for anywhere that might have weaker armour, Shads ran for the relay he had attacked on the fallen Gogulas, but Kat cut him off "You'll fry Bit too FOOL!" Jhese changed tact and steered the Gogu-Dragon off to the side, rushing up a canyon wall and leaping onto the broad head of the Gogulas, just above Bit, the Liger Zero snarled at Shads who grunted in reply.

"Uh Bit, er Champion Cloud?" Jhese stammered, completely fazed, and intimidated at being face to face-ish with Bit Cloud.

"Under the circumstances Bit is fine" the famous pilot laughed "what can I do?" Bit's calmness gave Jhese confidence.

"Right, get off so I can attack him, then strike the relay that hangs just above the back of the knee joint on these zoids"

"Countin' on ya!" Bit replied before launching the Liger Zero off the Gogulas' muzzle. Jhese's heart leaped to his chest; Bit Cloud was 'countin' on him!' Jhese could almost die. Shads growled a wake up call at the young pilot and gripped the Gogulas' head tighter; Jhese steadied himself and initiated the Gogu-Dragon's most powerful attack "ELECTRO-TALON!!!"

Jhese and Shads flew through the air before hitting the ground in an impressive slide, the Gogulas crashed to the ground beside him only moments later, mere inches from flattening the Gogu-Dragon, Jhese couldn't believe how quickly Bit had done his part, the white liger was already charging away towards where Christian was battling the Koning Wolf XV.

Darius laughed with glee. So, his Koning Wolf XV could out-fight a Liger Zero. The blue liger charged in; firing with its Vulcan guns. _Ha! Predictable! _Darius crowed as he dodged the strike laser claw that followed the attack, he peppered the blue zoid with his own firepower, the twin shock cannons reporting loudly. _One more hit like that and this fight is over_ the 'wolf tensed in anticipation when the white liger bounded between the two fighting zoids, Bit Cloud's Liger Zero "_Ha! Fine_" boasted Darius "_I will deal with you first!_"

"_Move kid_" growled Bit "_finish the race_"

"_No way am I leaving you to face this guy alone, he hammered my zoid_" Christian refused to back down, Jhese and Kat added their objections to his cause.

"_NOW!!!_" roared Bit, and the Liger Zero backed him up with its own metallic roar, clearly dismissed, the three high speed zoids reluctantly turned and loped away resuming the race.

"_How very noble of you, but you know I will catch them later_" crowed Darius as he and Bit Cloud circled their zoids around one another "_after I deal with you_"

"_There will be no later for you_" snarled Bit "_you just interrupted a Zoid Battle Commission event, it's disgusting, just who do you think you are?_"

"_I am the new leader of the Back-draft and soon the Battle Commission will answer to me!_"

"_We'll see about that_" snorted Bit "lets go partner!" The white liger roared and charged, its claws lighting up as golden energy pulsed though them powering the strike laser claw, the Koning Wolf snarled and ducked away from the attack, only to see the liger pivot in mid-air and fire its twin shock cannons straight into its face; as the view from the cockpit cleared Darius caught a glimpse of the Liger Zero, the liger tackled his 'wolf to the ground and slashed across his face with its glowing claws, once more the blades around the 'wolf's head wore the brunt of the strike; Darius laughed as he used the Koning Wolf's golden claws to pull the liger off its feet "_c'mon champion, you'll have to do better than that!_" his laughter proved premature as the white liger kicked up with its hind legs, smashing the blades that it had just struck with its strike laser claw, the blades shattered with a sick cracking sound, Darius rolled to the side just in time to avoid the follow up strike laser claw and was once again hit with the twin shock cannons _I need to go on the offensive_ Darius fired wildly with the Koning Wolf's remaining missiles, blanketing the Liger Zero with smoke and dust, Darius then charged into the haze, leaping into the air and initiating his own strike laser claw "_Take this Bit Cloud, these claws came off a Shadow Fox and are just as powerful as yours!_" the golden claws stretched out in front of Darius as he flew towards the dark shape that he believed was the Liger Zero; a golden fore-claw shot out of the dark shape, swatting the Koning Wolf's claws off to the side, another followed, smashing the Koning Wolf XV's head again, only this time no blades were present to protect it, Darius screamed in fury as the lights in the cockpit shut off and his zoid's systems froze, he was thrown about as the 'wolf crashed to the ground, where it lay unmoving, Darius glared at the Liger Zero through the smoke "_next time Bit Cloud!_"

The smoke cleared and revealed more zoids standing about the fight scene; Bit recognized the Battle Commission insignias on the Command Wolves and blue Blade Liger, the cavalry had arrived, too late for any action but just in time to bundle off their three prisoners.

"Well Bit Cloud" said the husky voice of the Battle Commission Chief "it looks like we have to be in your debt once again" Bit grinned at the grizzled face on the view screen as he watched Darius and his two lackeys bundled into a Gustav "you have been helping us so much since your beginnings as a zoid pilot, I'm running out of ways to thank you"

"I'm sure the Doc would happily take some form of payment, you know, for repairs to the Liger Zero" Bit replied

"Done" stated the Chief. Bit had let him off easy.


	21. Chapter 21

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Jhese could feel himself melting into the workings of his zoid partner as the two passed through the first trees into the forested area before the start/finish line, Christian and Kat were out in front but Jhese wasn't worried, he'd overtake them before the forest ended.

_Pull the controls hard on right and slide between two trees, pull back slightly then push them forwards, adding some boost to clear a fallen tree, the zoid moves like a body of flesh, bone and sinew rather than titanium and other metals and alloys, squeeze on some more throttle to speed through a clearing, then leap high over a small rocky out-cropping, left, left, right, left, slow down just the tiniest fraction to allow the pass to be made, a flash of blue on the right, the Zero Jaeger, ignore the zoid, left, left, the Lightning Siax, probably best to keep out of Kat's line of fire, veer off to the right slightly, jump a fallen log, don't forget the stump, nail the acceleration and take to the treetops, the Gogu-Dragon moved with the agility of a three tone monkey, the only branches it could navigate were as round as the biggest trees, back on the ground, right, right, jump, left. Deeper and deeper Jhese fell into Shadow's consciousness; his essence becoming part of the zoid's, he could feel the ground as it pounded past under his feet, he could feel the disturbance in the wind as he brushed past a tree._

Out of the forest they raced, igniting the thrusters to cross the start finish line and begin their final lap, the bend approaches and Jhese/Shads leans into it to corner with as much speed as possible, all four legs providing traction, the cliff looms high over the track, casting a shadow with both suns setting on the other side, the rock face was darkened to the point where it was like night-time, but treacherous or not Jhese/Shads had to get up that bluff, movement to the side told Jhese/Shads that Christian and Kat had caught up with their zoids better speed on open ground, Jhese/Shads ran for the cliff.

_Wow, look at him go. _

Kat watched Jhese navigate the cliff in the Gogu-Dragon, there was no way she could follow him in her Lightning Siax, she and Christian would have to take the trail, a much slower path, and hope to have a large enough lead by the time they reached the forest.

…………

Jhese crested the cliff with a swing and landed on all fours; metal claws bit the ground for traction and they were away, the electric blue zoid raced for the downward slope and raised onto two legs, running down the treacherous hill at a speed even the most agile Shadow Foxes or Attack Kats would find impossible, zoid and pilot both doing their part to speed down the fastest routs, _of course, not getting splattered against a rock is quick too_ Jhese thought and Shads chuckled in agreement.

At the bottom of the hill the Gogu-Dragon accelerated to full speed and rocketed towards the canyon area.

…………

Kat picked a careful path down to the bottom of the hill, not a quick path, but it sure beat standing around while your zoid was peeled off a rock, her Lightning Siax was fast and nimble, but neither it or the hotheaded pilot were willing to risk that slope.

At the bottom of the hill Kat hit the thrusters and shot forwards, almost doubling her speed _damn it_ she cursed _Jhese pulled a smooth one on us, not stopping in to pit like that, still he better hope he doesn't run into any trouble before the finish line_ her silent fuming was ignored by her zoid.

The canyon loomed into view and Kat knew that the trouble would be involving Jhese, the fool would be right in the middle of it, Kat eased off the boosters to get a longer look before she proceeded; it saved her hide, two homing missiles arced out of the fray and zeroed on her zoid, Kat lit up the thrusters once again and rocketed forwards, her zoid shook with the blast waves from the exploding missiles, still traveling at high speed Kat hit the group of warring zoids, catching glimpses of Command Wolves, Koning Wolves, Shield Ligers, Attack Kats and Red Horns as the tore the canyon to bits with their battle; caught unawares by the wash created by the Lightning Siax as it sped past many smaller zoids were thrown into the walls where they crumpled and lay still, bigger zoids such as Dark Horns, Red Horns and Shield Ligers turned their fire on the front runner but Kat was already around the corner and out of range.

Further into the canyon Kat found other large zoids attempting a similar tactic, they opened fire on the fast approaching Lightning Siax, Kat veered and sped along the canyon wall under full boost making it almost impossible to track her movement, needless to say catching her in the cross-hairs proved too much for the larger zoids and Kat sped past unscathed, but still finding no sign of Jhese and his zoid.

Kat rounded another bend and found her teammate; locked in combat with a Zaber Fang, the two zoids rolled over one another in the dust, clawing and biting and slowly moving towards the canyon exit. The Zaber Fang lunged forwards at the Gogu-Dragon its jaws opening wide to put the killer canines to use. _Funny how felines have teeth called canines_ thought Kat as she hurtled in to Jhese's rescue.

At the last second Jhese reacted, Shad's claws shot out and gripped the huge fangs "_Okay Bucky this is where you go A-wall_" Jhese called over the comm.

The Gogu-Dragon pulled the hapless feline zoid over its hind legs and kicked out; sending the four tone cat soaring into the cliff wall where it hit and stayed, too embedded to fall down through gravity alone and unable to kick itself free.

"_Well, if you're done admiring your unusual artwork we have a race to finish_" Kats voice came over the comm. System; Jhese looked around and spotted the Lightning Siax standing further into the canyon, Jhese heaved on the controls and Shads rolled to the side and onto its feet in one smooth motion, from the corner of his eye Jhese saw the 'Siax burst into motion, accelerating at a pace no other zoid could hope to match, Jhese slammed on the thrusters and Shads roared a protest _you gonna let them beat us?_ Jhese retorted and the zoid snarled a negative, the Lightning Siax and Gogu-Dragon roared towards the forest tearing away from each other as a tree loomed up between them, past the tree and Kat swerved again, slamming Jhese's zoid and causing it to scrape against a large oak, the ancient tree creaked as three or four tones of metal tore bark from its mighty trunk.

"_Hey!_" Jhese protested "_I have to fix that!_"

"_I know_" Kat's voice was full of smugness.

"_Well add this to my list!_" Jhese yelled and slammed the Lightning Siax into a thicket of saplings, the young trees exploded as the 'Siax plowed through them at nearly two hundred miles an hour, Shads roared with laughter and the 'Siax responded in kind, accepting the sport before slamming the Gogu-Dragon through a scrubby thorn bush, leaves, branches and undergrowth exploded into the air as the Electric blue zoid fired its thrusters, propelling itself onto a tree which it kicked off to slam the 'Siax to the earth in the mother of all crash tackles. The lightning Siax skidded to a halt and the Gogu-Dragon leapt off, racing away and out of the forest "_Hah!_" Jhese cried claiming victory as the finish line came into view, his celebration was short lived though as the Lightning Siax lashed out with its claws tripping the 'Dragon off balance and off its feet, Jhese's stomach lurched as the zoid fell chin first to the ground, he pulled the controls in Kat's direction hoping for some kind of miracle; Shads lashed out with his arm and caught the 'Siax by the hind leg, pulling it down to the ground, the electric blue zoid then pressed backed to its feet and leaped clear over the fallen zoid as it struggled to pick itself up.

A brown flash shot past Jhese and Shads as the two just got back to their feet, a Command Wolf Jhese realized and punched the thrusters, fifty feet to the line and Jhese knew he had this race, they were gaining on the 'Wolf and would overtake it with a good twenty feet to spare they pulled level with the 'Wolf also using thrusters, of a Zabat design Jhese dimly noted, thirty feet and a loud cough shook the 'Dragon zoid, the thrusters died and the 'wolf rocketed over the finish line with the Gogu-Dragon in hot pursuit.

"_NNNNOOOOOOOO!!!!!_" cried Jhese.


	22. Chapter 22

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Christian stood in the open cockpit of his zoid gazing down at the cheering spectators; in the crowd he saw his girlfriend, Tanya Frost grinning wildly up at him, he grinned back and continued to scan the crowd, Kat glared up at him, her expression both scathing and accepting, might be wise to avoid her, considering it was her fallen zoid he had leaped over to claim third place. He then looked at the other pilots, in the electric-blue zoid stood Jhese, Christian had a hard time believing that this young boy was the accomplished pilot he had raced with; he couldn't be more than fourteen, thirteen even. The bandana tied around his arm marked him as a bounty hunter, the fact that it was blue told Christian that Jhese only took bounties on wild zoids, young he may be but Jhese could well be a veteran of numerous conflicts. Looking past Jhese Christian studied the youth in the Command Wolf, and the zoid itself; the zoid was actually a Command Wolf AC, but it had been painted in the color scheme of a standard Command Wolf unit, strange Christian thought, the heavy long range gun had been replaced with a slimmer, lighter weapon that didn't pack as hard a punch but weighed less than half the AC 'Wolf's original arsenals did, the zoid also sported Zabat thrusters and stabilizers. The pilot himself couldn't have been much older than Jhese although he was at least a half foot taller, he had long hair that was messy but not dirty and he wore a long, sleeveless blue jacket that marked him as a Brad Hunter fan, around his bicep he wore a bandana, identical to Jhese's. _Not a coincidence_ Christian decided, he looked back at Jhese and saw him grinning at the pilot, he seemed more upset at himself.

_Just have to wait for the announcements_ Christian decided.

…………………

"Third place was taken by a young man who has travelled here from the southern continent, sadly he is not yet part of a team, and so he will need to find one before the end of the day if he wants to join the ranks of class A, Mr. Christian Barker and his Liger Zero!!!!" Cyrus applauded like everyone else until someone tapped him on the shoulder.

"Um, excuse me uh… Mr. Rhine is it?" the small man asked, clearly nervous.

"Cyrus is fine by me" the warrior responded, trying to put the man at ease.

"Yes, well the rules of class A state that a team may consist of no more than four pilots, yours however has seven members, I must regretfully inform you that unless you cut three members from your team you will not qualify for class A" the man handed him a form which Cyrus scanned, it was a member release form.

"Great" Cyrus moaned.

Kat glanced over his shoulder "I wonder if I could convince Christian to join the Wolf Pack…"

……………….

"Second place went to the youngest racer on the field, hold on, I'm just receiving advice that his zoid is called the Gogu-Dragon, there we have it folks! Second place was taken by the youngest racer on the track today, just fourteen years old, a pilot who has, reportedly, flown with Commander Hunt. Mr. Jhese Rivers and the Gogu-Dragon!" the crowd roared and cheered as the second place wreath was lowered over Shad's neck, the zoid rumbled with pleasure and Jhese whispered "congratulations pal".

"And now… the winner of this years Zoids Derby. Another extremely young pilot, only fifteen folks! And Jhese's team mate. Ladies and gentlemen Mr. David McDougal and his Command Wolf AC!!!" the crowd roared again, clapping and cheering as the giant golden laurel wreath was draped about the Command Wolf's neck, the metal giants were then surrounded by spectators as the barriers were dropped, allowing them to enter the winners circle and get up close to the years champions. A plat form rose above the people to come level with the zoid's cockpits "warriors, this event has granted you and your teams access to class A, there you will face challenges far greater than anything class C has to offer, we feel that as the winners of this race you may have the ability to excel in a much higher class, class A, please accept these trophies as proof of your victories today and your prize money will be deposited in your accounts"

Christian spotted Kat climbing the leg of Jhese's zoid; sure footed as a mountain goat she made her way up to the cockpit, but rather than getting in with Jhese she patted him on the head as she skirted around the edge, messing up his hair. The then grinned at Christian before leaping over to his zoid, the blue liger growled softly, but with a great deal of menace, it quieted at its pilots reassurance and Kat sat on the edge of the cockpit waiting, Christian glanced at Tanya who glared daggers at him, he then turned back to Kat who had followed his gaze to spy his girlfriend, she grinned and waved before turning back to Christian "she's gonna skin me alive you know" he stated.

"Jealous much?" Kat observed.

"You offering to replace her?" Christian retorted.

"You should be so lucky" Kat snorted "I came to offer you three teammates for entry into class A. Those three" she pointed at three pilots who stood together with Kat's captain and an old man "Dean, Scott and Flint; the wolf pack"

"I'll talk to them" Christian promised "after I talk to Tanya"

Okay, it's lame offerings as far as quantity goes, but what can ya do? Hope this satisfies you all for a few days. Thanks for reading.


	23. Chapter 23

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Jhese sat in his hanger enjoying a rare moment of peace and quiet, a steaming cup of coffee sitting in front of him, beyond that his zoid; Shads the Gogu-Dragon stood, not making any sound, just resting quietly. Jhese picked up his cup of coffee when a thought struck him. He dropped the cup of coffee, splashing the remains all over himself, Shads yowled in concern as Jhese swore and removed the shirt before the boiling liquid could burn him, tossing it to the side Jhese ran to the kitchen and grabbed a cloth, soaking it in cool water Jhese cleaned his pants and his stomach, shivering as the cool water touched his skin, Jhese then stormed back to the hanger, grabbing a less stained shirt as he ran, he pounded up the stairs and launched himself at Shads, the zoid opened his cockpit, the canopy sliding forwards rather than tilting, _classy that_ Jhese thought for the umpteenth time, he grabbed the remote and pressed the green button, the doors to the hanger slid open and the Gogu-Dragon pounded through it, things had changed in the week since the Zoids derby, the automatic doors on Jhese's hanger was one of the first things he had spent his winnings on,. Clicking the red button Jhese checked to make sure the door closed before focusing on the road ahead, Shads raced along the road until a Gustav blocked his path, he then went cross country, leaping fences and dry creek beds to take the shortest possible path to his answers.

……………..

Thomo looked at the group of people gathered about him, now this was part of selling that he enjoyed, small as it was the group knew what they wanted and were ready to cough up the money, a big three dimensional holograph of the Gogu-Dragon rotated behind him as he explained the production limitations on the factory and presented forms for the people to sign to go on the waiting list, their money would go towards more workers and speed up production, so the quicker he could get their deposits the more chance he had of surprising them with an early zoid, a roar at the front of the factory still provided a welcome distraction, Thomo and the small group left the office to investigate.

………….

"Shads you nutter, we're supposed to knock not shake the place down!" the big zoid growled in a halting fashion "I'm serious ya jerk, stop laughing" the zoid laughed harder and swung his tail.

BOOOM! BOOOM!

The door to the factory shuddered as Shads' tail struck it a third time; then it opened.

The group ducked back as Shads soared over their heads and slid to the middle of the factory floor "QUIT SHOWING OFF!" Jhese yelled and the zoid stilled "thank you" Jhese stated and Shads rumbled apologetically.

"Ah this is the prototype" Thomo stated and yelled up at Jhese as the cockpit slid open "Jhese! The CAS armour is ready, let's try it!"

"Can't it wait?" Jhese pleaded.

"Sure it can, but our customers would really like to see it!"

Jhese looked down at the people, sure enough they were all warriors, and customer's needs came first.

Jhese steered the Gogu-Dragon over to the maintenance pad and waited, the locks clamped down on Shad's four feet and the zoid rumbled grumpily "oh come on Shads, you enjoy showing off" the zoid snarled in reply "you big baby" Jhese chuckled.

A small monitor slid out of the console in front of Jhese and a diagram of the Gogu-Dragon appeared on the screen "right, Shads it says here that your new system is called "Peacemaker" mechanical arms latched onto the Gogu-Dragon's armour, the cockpit was suddenly alive with clicks and hisses as the armour detached from the main body.

"_Jhese, you should notice that the parts will start scrolling down the screen, pictures, diagrams and combat notes, this will only happen on this pad because it will run a complete systems check on each part, in a whalord or hover cargo for example it will be much faster_"

Jhese looked down at the screen to see the first part of the "Peacemaker" scroll down, the head armour was sleeker than the Gogu-Dragon's normal armour and more flared, the yellow and red color scheme made Jhese think fire, he read the note; _same defensive capabilities from a lighter material, inferred and heat detecting screens make it possible to locate enemies using either smoke units or optic camouflage._

The shoulders and forelegs were re-armed with a similar material, as was the back, thighs, ankles and tail. Jhese imagined in his mind and saw the Gogu-Dragon looking like a snakelike dragon from old imperial legends, the royal emperor dragons.

The weapons came next; two small gattling cannons were attached to wing-like fins that stuck out from the zoid's side, just behind the front legs, a lightweight rifle was mounted between the two gattling cannons, two small boosters were added; one on each ankle, pointing down, the notes described the boosters being used for small bursts of flight, making the zoid very agile but not increasing the overall speed at all. _Still _Jhese considered _not many zoids can dodge in midair_.Overall the system seemed great, but without a test nothing could be certain.

"_Okay boy, its time to launch this puppy. CAS bunker release!_" the four walls of the CAS bunker lifted away and the locks released.

"Shads, your new system is called 'Peacemaker'…LETS DO IT!!!" the Peacemaker-Dragon roared and charged at the hanger door, once again clearing the small group of customers, Jhese eased on the thrusters and rather than hitting the floor the zoid skated forwards on the ion flames "WHOA!" Jhese yelled ripping the controls about, Shads responded to the panic flailing his legs and succeeding in nothing, the zoid clipped the door frame and spun into the enormous yard, Jhese de-powered the boosters and Shads slammed to the ground roaring in fury and thrashing for its feet.

"_That was elegant_" Thomo stated over the comm. "get on your feet and try that again, slowly" Shads stood and when they stood evenly Jhese eased on the boosters; nothing happened at first, then the Peacemaker-Dragon slowly lifted off the ground "_hold it, hold it, that's it boy, now, slowly ease the boosters off on one side_" Jhese eased the boosters slowly on the left side; Shads tipped to his left and stopped "_now change sides_" Jhese complied and Shads tipped back to the right "_okay, now level him_" Shads leveled "_now, slowly ease the controls forward, the control system changes when the zoid is airborne_" Jhese hinted forwards on the controls and the 'Dragon began sliding forwards, pointing all four legs slightly back to generate the movement, Jhese pulled back and Shads kicked forward using the ion flames to halt his movement, Jhese continued pulling back and the zoid began sliding backwards, Jhese urged the zoid forward again and banked to the right, Shads' left front leg pushed out and the zoid spun swiftly to the right.

Thomo watched as Jhese quickly came to grips with the controls, _the boy has talent_ he thought quietly and looked at the group; they seemed mesmerized as the zoid skated about the large yard, lost in the magic of the zoid. Thomo called over the comm. "_you ready to pick up the pace boy?_"

"_Sure thing pops_" Jhese smirked

"_FIRE!!!_" Thomo yelled.

Jhese hauled on the controls and Shads spun in a tight arc, skating out from under the first water balloon, more followed as the catapults whipped them into the air. Jhese piloted to the best of his abilities and Shads responded, the zoid ducking and twisting, rolling, accelerating, leaping and jinking to avoid the water filled barrage.

"_Fence him boys!!!_" Thomo yelled and fifty balloons launched into the air in a loose ring. Jhese prepared to avoid the barrage when all four boosters cut out. The Peacemaker-Dragon landed on its feet and Jhese turned off the boosters at the controls; switching the combat system back to normal, he then squeezed the triggers on both control arms, firing the gattling cannons, water spayed the zoid as the balloons popped short of their target.

"Hey Thomo, the boosters ran out!" Jhese complained after the exercise "what gives?"

"The core can only store enough energy for short bursts of flight in a sustained battle; it has a kill system to leave the zoid enough core energy to last twelve hours at peak performance. That is why it has both long and short range projectile weapons, rather than lasers and ion blades. Still, you did get two hours out of them"

"Did you make any sales?" Jhese inquired.

"All bar one today, we racked it up by my reckoning"

"Oh! That reminds me, I had a question I came to ask" Jhese said.

"Shoot" Thomo replied.

"Well, in the battle with Bit Cloud I noticed that Bit's Liger Zero seemed to be in a different league to Christian's, aren't they both ultimate X zoids?"

"Ah, the 'Miracle of Zero'" Thomo sighed "not all zoids have the ultimate X organoid system kiddo, even if they are the same zoid. Notice all the Berserk Furies these days?" Jhese nodded "ever think one of them might be an ultimate X?" Jhese shook his head "well, not all Liger Zero units have the system either, it is not something that scientists can produce. I don't know about you, but I have heard many rumors surrounding the origins of organoid systems" 


	24. Chapter 24

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_Shots landed all around the Dark Spiner and its pilot, a young man of eighteen, the two had been together for four years and had shared many adventures and experiences, both good and bad, but they had come through it all, together. But now, alone and surrounded by enemy zoids, the pair had run out of options, a heavy missile flew through the air and hit the ground beside them throwing the zoid and its pilot through the air, they landed hard and fell through the ground, into a dark, dark hole. _

"So our opponent is the Barrage Team?" Jhese asked "what zoids do they have?"

"Favorites, or do you want the whole list?" David questioned "normally they use a Command Wolf Town, a Red Horn and a Redler Interceptor, giving them a range of speed, power and mobility that we would have a hard time beating, but the scary part is that they have twenty other different zoids that they can choose from" David handed Jhese a list of the zoids that they might wind up facing in the match then looked at David, who seemed ready to say something, _winning the Zoids Derby has done wonders for his confidence_ Jhese grinned and the older boy gave his suggestions "personally I'd recommend Kat, Cyrus and I in this battle, we do have more experience in combat than you do Jhese, and your armour doesn't really have any kind of long-range weapon attached to the Gogu system, I know that the Peacemaker system does, but like I said; experience counts and you have only had six hours of practice time with it"

"Kat, I have mounted your Lightning Siax with two anti-aircraft missile launchers, same with my 'Wolf, they are both homing missile units and completely removable; my plan is to have Cyrus stay behind us until we have weapon lock on the enemy Redler and then he attacks as we fire, hopefully giving us an advantage over the Redler Interceptor's better capabilities. Kat, the next phase of the plan is for us to ditch the missile pods and engage the Command Wolf Town and Red Horn in combat, 'Wolf on 'Wolf and Siax on Red Horn, any aid Cyrus can lend will be a bonus" David looked about "any questions?" the Crew shook their heads, plan B seemed to be a by the seat of your pants thing.

Jhese spent the rest of the day practicing with his new CAS armour and system, learning its quirks, strengths and weaknesses, the red and gold armour handled so much faster than the electric blue Gogu armour, Jhese imagined the two in battle with one another but couldn't come up with a conclusive winner. He had finally gotten to see his zoid from the outside and he liked what he saw; the new amour seemed to lengthen and narrow the snout, making it seem to have more of a Dark Spiner look, even with the colors, the head armour also sported twin antler-like horns and sweptback plates covering the cheeks, red armour plated the neck, back and tail, the end of the tail was extended by the armour and sported fins on the tip that added stability but also doubled as durable blades in close combat, the shoulders sported a similar swept back finned look with gold paint rather than red, as did all four ankles, the legs had red armour that wrapped about the front and swept up and back, just like the rest of the zoid's armour, the power links to the front claws were cut off and diverted to all four ankle boosters and the gattling cannons sacrificed power by being lightweight, and the rifle was long-range but still not heavy firepower. Jhese deducted that the armour was mostly designed for evasion of attacks rather than fighting back, being a thorn as part of a team strategy.

………..

Jhese sat in the Gustav that the team had pooled together to buy, the zoid hauled two trailers, a mobile home and a small workshop with one mechanical arm, the three competing zoids had traveled on foot to the battle ground where Jhese had replenished their energies from the workshop, Jhese surveyed his handiwork in the Gustav's cockpit, four monitors on the dash enabled him to survey the field from four points of view; one from each of his teammates zoids, and the fourth came from the Battle Commission broadcast, Jhese had put in extra on the terms that he chose the zoid, he had bought the family transport version with a bigger cockpit and extra seats; he and Thomo had wired the zoid so that Jhese could operate the workshop and mechanical arm from the cockpit of the Gustav, Thomo had grumbled constantly about the team not letting Jhese and the 'Dragon compete in their first class A fight until Cyrus had asked him to upgrade his Redler zoid to compete with the one that might be on the Barrage team. Jhese noticed that Thomo and Cyrus seemed to get along much better since the Zoids Derby.

Jhese looked to the sky to watch the Judge streak down to the battlefield, the capsule burrowed into the ground and the Judge rose into place.

"_This area is a designated Zoid battle field, please clear the area, DANGER, DANGER; please leave now. This battle will be held under the rules of battle mode: 0982. A three on three class A contest between the Crew Team and the Barrage Team. Area scanned, battlefield set up. Ready…FIGHT!!!_" the judge crossed both hands and a loud gong rang across the landscape.

Cyrus swooped low, hoping to go unnoticed until the moment was right. He swooped through the rolling hills in his newly upgraded zoid, Thomo didn't have time to do much but what he had accomplished seemed nothing short of impossible, every joint moved perfectly, without a squeak, the zoid hadn't flown as fast as it did now, well, ever. The Redler now carried a long range weapon and heavier armour, yet it still flew faster and maneuvered quicker than it ever had.

The anti-air missiles flew into the air, that was Cyrus's cue, he pulled back on the controls and accelerated hard; the Redler responded by zooming into the sky at mach 2. Cyrus held on to the controls as he felt himself pushed back into the seat, he glimpsed his team below; charging at the enemy zoids, not his concern. His concern was following the anti-air barrage until he could engage the enemy Redler.

The Redler ducked from the air, avoiding the first missile by millimeters, a second missile hit it a glancing blow and the zoid shook as the explosion blew it through the air, rather than fighting the impact the pilot simply folded the zoids wings and plummeted, rolling and cart-wheeling towards the earth, _he's skillful _Cyrus admitted _better be careful when I engage him in combat_ the remaining missiles turned to follow the Redler and Cyrus followed them, he noticed how the enemy pilot didn't stop planning; extending the zoid's wings only slightly to slow and stabilize the decent, eventually the Redler stopped spinning and the pilot let it fall for a second longer before snapping the wings wide and pulled level with the ground, accelerating out from under the cloud of missiles, many exploded on the ground, but several managed to turn and resume the chase, Cyrus opened his zoids wings and rode the blast-wave for a speed boost.

_This could be interesting _Cyrus thought.

..................

Kat charged at the Red Horn, firing as she went. The big zoid lumbered around to meet her charge but Kat simply veered off and chose a new angle, she was outmaneuvering the bigger zoid and had been since the start, but things were still not entirely in her favor; the Red Horn was protected on all sides, not just by heavy armour but by small lasers mounted on the tail, hind legs and head, plus the big rotating cannon on its back.

Kat had been hit several times by the small lasers, but had so far managed to evade the bigger cannon.

She charged again, using the only tactic that seemed to work; stay moving and plague the sides with her twin lasers. Thankfully enough this tactic was only part of a bigger battle strategy that Jhese had come up with on seeing the Barrage Team's zoids, Kat and David were simply drawing and herding the slow Red Horn away from the Command Wolf Town.

"_Kat, now!_" yelled Jhese.

"_About time!_" Kat replied.

She turned away from the big zoid and followed Jhese's directions.

…………….

David and his Command Wolf AC ran through the hills, catching glimpses of his target as his zoid ran David tried to get a shot off but every time the Town 'Wolf came into his crosshairs another hill rose between them.

Suddenly the two zoids reached the limit of the battle field. David slammed on the brakes and his zoid skidded to a stop, David breathed a sigh of relief and checked his sights for the Town 'Wolf. The zoid was headed strait for him!

"_Unlucky Rookie!_" the pilot jeered "_it's a fence not a stop sign!_" David realized his error and fired at the Town 'Wolf, but his opponent was already too close for the long range weapon, David hunkered his zoid to the ground, hoping to get enough traction to stay in the boundaries of the battlefield as the Town 'Wolf leaped with a flying tackle.

A dark shape hit the Command Wolf Town ramming it bodily and sending it flying out of bounds. "_Number 13557, out of the battle. RING OUT!!!_" came the Judge's ruling, Kat's Lightning Siax roared triumphantly.


	25. Chapter 25

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_The pilot recovered some hours later, regaining consciousness with a series of groans and moans. The Dark Spiner remained silent until its pilot was speaking normally again "Where are we? The last thing I remember was falling through the ground" the zoid grumbled in reply "yeah, I'll bet that fall was no picnic for you either" a sharp yap was the zoid's reply "oh well, lets find a way out of this hole" the pilot stated "pick a tunnel partner"_

Cyrus was in over his head and he knew it, despite his zoid's improvements the Redler Interceptor was better still and, loath as he was to admit it, the pilot was better than him, both more experienced and possessing faster reflexes, luckily his zoid only possessed a single shot cannon, this was the only thing that had allowed Cyrus to stay in the air, if the weapon had spray abilities he would have been shot down several minutes ago.

The proximity alarm beeped and Cyrus pitched his Redler forwards, another beep and he jinked to the right, he managed to avoid both shots, but he had lost height in the process, the Redler Interceptor was on him quickly, firing shot after shot at Cyrus's zoid, driving him lower still, then Cyrus saw the reason why, the enemy Redler had driven him towards the Red Horn and within the range of the lumbering zoid's cannon fire. _Smart bastard _Cyrus grumbled when an idea struck him, he continued evading the Redler fire, but kept his eyes on the Red Horn, when the Red Horn opened fire the Redler popped off some final shots then tucked in behind Cyrus's zoid, as he did Cyrus rolled his Redler on its back and flared the wings the maneuver caught the Interceptor's pilot off guard and he flew strait into the Redler's open claws, Cyrus folded one wing and the two zoids spun in a tight circle, both taking hits as they fell to the ground.

…………….

Kat watched as the two Redler zoids plummeted to the ground, part of her cried out and wanted nothing more than to go and check on Cyrus, but she had a job to do.

Kat stormed into the clearing with both cannons firing repeatedly; the Red Horn reacted by swiveling its own cannon to face the Lightning Siax, Kat veered off to the side and rotated her own weaponry to face the Red Horn and continued firing as she kept ahead of the shots.

The Red Horn pilot then decided to play his trump card; two flaps opened on the hind legs of the zoid, revealing the high speed missiles.

_Time to leave_ Kat scrambled as the missiles fired, racing for a small thicket of shrubs and trees, the only cover on the battlefield.

She nearly made it.

David had circled around while Kat had charged in, taking more time but finally catching the Red Horn on the blind spot, two shots at nearly point blank separated the heavy armour from the head and frill, the red zoid turned and fired, but David was already on the move, the grey 'Wolf dashed in to the Red Horn, quickly moving too close for the bigger zoid's weapons. David pushed the boosters to max and the Zabat flight gear powered the speed to its peak; the 'Wolf slammed into the Red Horn and began tearing at its metal skull with claws and teeth.

The Red Horns pilot was stunned for a few moments, but recovered quickly, swinging the mighty head of the zoid. The Command Wolf AC was launched through the air, crashing through the trees and bushes of the small thicket to slide into Kat's crumpled 'Siax.

The Red Horn roared, battered and broken, the zoid had emerged victorious and celebrated with its most primal instincts.

Prematurely.

The first volley of bullets hit under the jaw, the most vulnerable part in the zoid's customized armour; quickly the zoid lowered its head to protect the weak point, the second volley slammed into the skull. With the armour gone and all the abuse it had suffered from the Command Wolf the remaining armour was blown away and the zoid crumpled.

"_The winners are: The Crew Team!!!!_"

Cyrus looked around the battlefield and grimaced, they would only break even with this win.

………………..

Team Crew celebrated their victory with a feast; orange juice flowed like water, boasts were made and dismissed as fantasy and dreams were awakened in everyone's hearts, spirits soared.

………………..

Out in the desert one person was less than happy with the day's results and was letting his displeasure be felt by those around him. The demoted class B captain roared at his team, calling them for every fault, bringing every character flaw into the open and berating them for it.

A loud blast caught everyone's attention and the team rushed for the bunker door. The door slid up, but the view was restricted by bright lights from the outside. Glaring into the light the team made out fuzzy spots and then shapes, four of them, as the door opened to its limit the figures became clear.

Zoids.

But like no zoids that team Barrage had ever laid eyes on before.

"Evening team… Barrage wasn't it?" a figure jumped up on the 'Wolf-like zoid's cockpit "just lost to one of the two rookie teams I heard"

"Who the hell are you?" demanded the team leader, a large man of twenty and regular pilot of the Red Horn. Jacob O Connor.

"Ah me, you could call me something of a benefactor if you will. I come with these four zoids that we will pilot to win our way into class A where we can take our revenge on those who have shamed us, namely the rookie teams"

"Wait, you're saying that you want us to let you join our team and just go along with it when you extract 'revenge' on teams that beat us?"

"Yes"

"Cool"

Colby smiled.


	26. Chapter 26

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_The Dark Spiner moved cautiously through the tunnel, the footing was unstable to say the least, and while not slippery felt as though it could slide at any time, the stomping of a zoid on stones and loose rocks became the crunching of a zoid on gravel, then the floor became solid, like a road, tar or cement. The Dark Spiner looked about, its head sweeping left and right, its snout-light roving over markings and sigils as they moved forwards, something about the place made the Dark Spiner 'feel' at home._

_.............................................._

Jhese sat on the platform gazing at the Redler, how had it survived the crash? And just as worrisome, what to do with it now? The flight units were so damaged that they couldn't be fixed and to buy the new parts it would need would cost more than a new zoid. Jhese had told Cyrus this and Kat had jumped, offering to take him shopping, Jhese felt sorry for Cyrus, poor guy would wind up carrying Kat's shopping rather than shopping for a new zoid; Kat may be a tomboy, but she was still classed as female.

Giving the zoid a final once over Jhese went to the drawing board, Cyrus wanted to keep the Redler; he had made that much clear. And since it was Cyrus's gattling cannon that had earned them their victory Jhese felt obliged to do his best.

.............................

David was probably one of the quieter pilots that a person could meet, he preferred the quieter pursuits in his spare time; photographing wildlife, watching wild zoids and reading, he lay stretched out on the couch in Cyrus's bunker. When his father had died both Jhese and Cyrus had offered him a place to stay but he had gone with Cyrus, Jhese might be a quieter person, but his home was usually alive with sounds, the Hanger echoed every sound from the workshop, or from outside, but the Bunker muffled it, making it the perfect place to retreat with a good book, just like the one he was immersed in.

The ringing startled David from deep within the pages. Cursing as reality found him David put the book down and got up, twisting his neck to loosen the muscles he walked to the console and answered the call.

"_Ah good morning Cy-Dave? David. Well, congratulations on your victory yesterday. As I'm sure you're now aware, class A is a more intense league than class C, I regret to inform you that your next match has been decided already, I am well aware that your team suffered heavily to take the victory, but the Battle Commission has short shifted you and I have to deliver the message_" Official Chase sighed "_the rest is up to you_" Official Chase looked down at his console for a moment then looked back at David "_I've just sent you the coordinates, battle structure, your opponents and such. Good luck and fair winds_" the screen went blank. Then the data began streaming in, the Panther Team, three Zaber Fang zoids, all of them were painted black, one had a long range rifle and the other had a missile unit, the final zoid seemed standard, although the data called it a Zaber Fang Mk III. David considered their options; Jhese was in, that much was certain, he might have Cyrus's Redler able to do something, but David doubted flying would be one of its abilities, and they had five days to install a combat system if he came back with a new zoid today. Kat's Lightning Siax had suffered severe damage from the Red Horn, and Kat was still in the hospital being checked for broken bones, David's zoid was in no better condition, the Command Wolf wouldn't be battling for some time, which left David with two options, spend a great heap of cash and buy a new zoid, install a combat system and have only hours to familiarize, or hope like hell that Thomo, Jhese and Thomo's mechanics could get his 'Wolf ready in three days.

Chances of winning seemed slim.

…………………..

Kat did not belong in a hospital, that much was plain to both staff and fellow patients. She ranted and raved and pointed out that as a former military nurse she knew what she was talking about, the young doctor's response was to send his nurse away to fetch the matron, a dragon of a woman who brooked no arguments and intimidated even Kat, the woman had simply squeezed the girl's wrist in an iron grip, Kat had to wonder if even her zoid could manage such a grip in its jaws. The X-ray scans did not bring good news, a clean break in the upper arm, relatively quick healing, requiring several weeks at most, Kat nearly cried, Cyrus had tricked her.

……………..

Cyrus walked away from the hospital somewhat less than happy.

Making Kat believe that they were going shopping seemed like a good plan before the hospital staff had taken her away, but the murderous look she had shot him had chilled his blood; there would be hell to pay when she got out.

……………….

David called the team meeting and they all gathered at Cyrus's home.

Jhese was the first to arrive and he and Cyrus spent some minutes goofing and playing Zoid battle games on the console.

They just started a second game when Kat burst in; a murderous gleam shone from the grim depths of her dark scowl "YOU!" Cyrus backed away "don't run creep, you're only delaying the inevitable!!!" Cyrus fled and Kat hobbled after him as fast as her leg would allow.

Jhese sighed and slumped back on the couch; this could last some time. He jumped as the door was flung open a second time and David walked in, followed by Thomo and another older person, in his late teens or twenties maybe. Jhese looked at David and then Thomo; pleading both for answers, both shook their heads and mouthed "later".

David waited for Cyrus and Kat to stop charging about before he introduced the stranger "guys, this is Derik 'Stalker' Stiller, he's a-"

"Mercenary" Kat grated "Dave, are you sure about hiring a mercenary? Can we trust him?" Kat glared at Stalker who leered back. Kat shivered, she felt like she was being assessed by a predator.

"I trust Derik" Cyrus stated "I met him before, well, before we began zoids battles. Pilots a… Gun Sniper if my memory serves; black thing, heavily modified and always breaking down"

"Yeah, I know the one" Jhese piped up "I always told you to leave it as I fixed it or it would keep breaking down, you never listened"

"I couldn't help it, I'd see a new component and need it"

"And install it badly and break your zoid. Again"

"There, see? He can't follow orders! He's useless to us!" Kat cried

"That's cool" Cyrus smirked "He's filling in for you"

"Looks like you've been out-voted Kat. Better get used to him" David stated in a neutral tone.

"Yeah kitten, we'll have some good times together, once you get used to me" Stalker cooed. Kat shuddered and stormed off.

"That probably wasn't wise" Thomo stated staring after Kat "you better watch yourself Stalker"

"Huh, you may be right old man" Stalker replied "but I'm not losing any sleep over an angry girl" he walked out the door and the others followed him.

Jhese continued looking at the hallway that Kat had stormed down, the poor girl might not be so quick to forgive as Stalker thought, Jhese waited some time before going to comfort Kat and try to bring some peace between her and the mercenary _hell hath no fury like a woman scorned _Jhese mulled over this phrase as he headed to the guest room where Kat would be fuming, it was his mothers saying _hell hath no fury like a woman scorned._


	27. Chapter 27

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_The room was huge; calling it a hall wouldn't even do it justice, a theater maybe or _A stadium _the voice rang clearly in the heads of both zoid and pilot _I don't get many visitors around here these days, but please enjoy my hospitality for a short while at least _the Dark Spiner rumbled and headed for the tunnel on the far side of the field. As they passed through the tunnel the pilot stared about the walls, noticing the same markings and patterns that had been present in the earlier tunnel. The Dark Spiner snorted an alert as they reached the end of the tunnel; the pilot looked forwards to see a figure approach out of the gloom._

…………………………..

Jhese ran after Kat. Down the hallway and off to the right, he knew where she might be heading, he hoped. Finally he caught sight of her, jumping into her car, a low sung sporty convertible, she turned the ignition as Jhese reached the garage door and raced away, _why couldn't she have learned to drive a manual? _Jhese cursed the automatic only needed one good foot to operate.

Jhese jumped onto his motorcycle and kicked it to life, popping a wheelie as he took off after Kat.

……………….

Cyrus looked up at Stalker's new zoid; the Black Sniper was more of an all round zoid than many other long-range 'Snipers, it boasted the regular long-range body gun, but also packed a pair of high caliber canons; one on each arm, the anchor claw had been spiced up for more kicking power, and Cyrus remembered that Stalker could move that zoid as quick and precise as a martial artist, if he could keep it from malfunctioning. The zoid seemed different though; finally Cyrus picked it up, it lacked the cheap, bolt on look that it used to have and seemed standard, he was surprised Jhese hadn't mentioned it. Cyrus looked around, Jhese was nowhere in sight, then he caught sight of a dust trail heading away from his bunker, Cyrus recognized Kat's car, _oh no, I've hurt her again_ without a word to the others Cyrus ran for his zoid and jumped in. Flying was out of the question, but Jhese had been hard at work on the zoid and it now ran really fast, with the aid of Zabat boosters of course.

Cyrus grinned; someday he would have to talk Jhese into building a super Zabat.

He powered up the zoid and ran after the dust plume.

…………………..

"_HOLD THAT DAMN LINE TIGHT!!!_" Colby screamed at the Barrage team "_HARVEY, GET OFF TO YOUR LEFT SOME MORE! DILLAN, PLUCK UP SOME BALLS AND JUMP IN THE COCKPIT, WE NEED THAT ZOID TURNED OFF!!!_" the Barrage team moved to comply, hauling back on the electron wires that held the zoid to the ground.

The zoid squirmed and Colby's Sabre Wolf skidded forwards, Colby cursed and dug the claws in, pulling back against the line "GONNA CUT-CHU BIRD!" he yelled brandishing the sabre that gave his zoid its namesake, not just at the zoid pinned under the electron wires but also at his teammates; Jacob O' Connor in the Red Horn, Harvey Magera in the Rev Shinobi, Jamie Alpine in the Iron Mandrill and Dillan Fade, the tactician, on the cliff directly above the pinned zoid.

"YA HEAR THAT? GONNA CUT-CHU!!!"

The Buster Eagle stilled, throwing the zoids holding it down off balance, the zoid then tore itself around, pulling its cannons to bear on Colby's zoid, Jamie tugged on the wire as hard as the Iron Drill could manage, throwing the shot wide, the shock waves hit the Sabre Wolf, knocking it from its feet, the Buster Cannons aimed again and clicked, nothing, the deadly gun was out of ammo, finally.

Colby picked his zoid up and pulled to once again tighten the wires pinning the Buster Eagle to the ground "_For Zi's sake Dillan, JUMP!!!_" Colby screamed.

"COLBY!" yelled Dillan "COMPANY"

Colby looked about and spotted the approaching dust trail, too close. The car became recognizable, Kat.

Kat had noticed the dust being kicked up and had moved closer to investigate, curious was the Kat, she saw the zoids fighting with the pinned flying zoid. Thinking maybe it was a rogue zoid Kat had turned on the radio to call the Crew in to help; instead she had picked up Colby's voice screaming instructions at the Barrage team, naturally Kat had to interrupt. She stepped on the gas and accelerated over, sweeping under the Sabre Wolf's feet, the enormous robot shifted as its pilot tried to get a better view of the car.

Colby cursed as Kat drove underneath him, the Buster Eagle hauled and broke a wire as Colby lost his footing, with only three corners of the net anchored the 'Eagle took to the sky, trying vainly to escape and dragging the three zoids a short distance away from Kat and Colby.

"_You're dead meat Kat!_" Colby yelled as he tried to crush Kat's car under his zoids feet, Kat swerved underneath the zoid again, trying to make it impossible for the zoid to get a bead on her, Colby reacted by leaping strait into the air and slashing down with the 'Wolf's sabre; Kat veered away and pressed the gas pedal to the floor, speeding outside the blade's reach, only then did she realize her error; the Sabre Wolf lined her up with its single rifle.

Colby grinned as he stared down the sights at Kat's car "_THIS IS FOR SLAMMING THE DOOR ON MY HAND TOMBITCH!!!_" he squeezed the trigger and cursed, twice, loudly; not only had he missed ruining Kat's second pride and joy but someone had hit his zoid, he scanned the horizon and spotted the culprit.

Jhese leaned over the handlebars of his trusty motorbike and grinned as he flipped a rude hand sign in Colby's direction, quite pleased with his work, Kat was still in one piece, as was her Mustang convertible.

"_Thanks Jhese, I owe you_" Kat called over the radio.

"_I put too much effort into that car to let you get it blown to pieces in the desert_" Jhese laughed, he paused for a moment "_and I would have been right pissed about you being blown up with it_" in the Mustang Kat sighed, _just like a baby brother_, then she realized that the danger was far from over and planted her foot on the gas, but no muscle car could outrun a 'wolf zoid and the biomechanical combat unit bounded over her in moments.

"_Did you really think I would let you interrupt and live?_" Colby snarled, the 'wolf turned its head up to point at Jhese "_and you're in no better position twerp!_" a loud screech caused Colby to snap his head around; the Sabre Wolf tumbled as it was swept off its feet by the Buster Eagle "_Can't you morons do anything right?_" Colby roared.

The 'eagle had been nothing but trouble since he had first tried to get one of the Barrage team into it, the zoid had simply ejected the hapless O'Conner out, the same held true for both Jamie and Harvey. Colby didn't get it, the Iron Drill, the Rev Shinobi and the Sabre Wolf had all accepted their pilots without a fuss, so Colby had jumped into the cockpit, that had torn it, the Buster Eagle had gone wild; blasting its way out of the Barrage Team's hanger and trying to escape, luckily Jamie had fired the 'Drill's electro net and slowed the zoid enough for the team to grab its corners with their zoids, Colby had jumped in the Sabre Wolf and grabbed the final corner and here they were.

Colby spotted the culprit just as his laughter came over the radio "_hey COLBY! You should know better than caging eagles; predatory birds get peckish!_" yelled Cyrus from beyond the three damaged zoids. Colby studied Cyrus's work; the Iron Drill stood on three limbs, one arm hanging loosely by its side, busted at the shoulder, the Rev Shinobi had lost its lower jaw and the Red Horn had been dragged around two hundred meters before succumbing to cannon fire and being slammed into rocks, obviously a system freeze.

"_Not a bad mess eh Colby? Oh, heads up!_" Colby looked about and spotted the Buster Eagle swinging about for another pass. Colby readied the Sabre Wolf and swung the sabre arm to an en guard position. The 'Eagle banked off at the last moment and tried to make a run for it "Not so fast bird, I'm not done with you" Colby aimed at the zoid and fired twice, the shots tore through the air towards the retreating 'Eagle, a speeding object intercepted them.

Cyrus swore as the first shot punched through the Redler's head, just behind the cockpit, and swore again as the second severed his partner's head completely.

Cyrus swore over and over as the zoid's head rolled over and over; at some point he fell from the harness, probably when there wasn't enough cockpit left to secure him to. He lay for some moments dizzy and sore until a familiar voice yelled "_GRAB ON YOU FOOLS! WE NEED TO GET SOME ZOIDS TO CHASE THAT ONE DOWN!!!_" Cyrus groaned and rolled over, man he hated Colby, staggering from his lack of balance the leader of team Crew got to his feet in time to hear Colby's departing remark "_BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME FOOL!_" He watched the Sabre Wolf charge off after the Buster Eagle. Turning to his mangled zoid Cyrus groaned; the head was some fifty feet from where he stood, nearly an even hundred from the body. He looked at the retreating shape of the Buster Eagle and thought wryly _not even a thanks, _the zoid banked and rocketed back towards Cyrus, soaring over both Colby and Cyrus's stunned teammates to land in front of the youth, the massive beak slammed into the sand in front of him and Cyrus leaped back, almost falling on his butt, the 'Eagle chortled and the canopy hissed as it lifted from the cockpit, Cyrus stood dumb for a moment until the 'Eagle tilted its head and cockpit in the pilot's direction, an invite if Cyrus ever saw one.

Still shaky, Cyrus climbed into the cockpit which immediately felt like home. The zoid took to the sky with a scream, the weapons display blinked to life on the console as Cyrus strapped his recovering body into the seat "okay, it looks like your Buster Cannon is out of ammo, the Buster claw seems too close range for our message, but it will suffice, ah, the AZ missiles, those restraining wires must have stopped you using them somehow" Cyrus flicked the hinged caps on the control arms and revealed the two red buttons "what do you say to me hitting the red buttons mate?" the zoid screamed its willingness and Cyrus grinned as the crosshairs turned green.

Colby back-peddled the 'Wolf as fast as he could, turning it round to flat out run with his teammates still clinging to the side, his keen ears picked up the whistling of the incoming missiles but it was drowned out by the incoming comm. Message "_SOUNDS LIKE A WHISTLIN', BUT SMELLS LIKE NAPALM IN THE MORNING! SUCK ON THIS COLBY!!!_" the missiles struck the ground around the Sabre Wolf; whipping up the desert sand and blowing the zoid off its feet, Colby felt for his teammates, they were outside in the middle of it, so he pulled them in before the zoid was buried under the sands.


	28. Chapter 28

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

"What are you exactly? You don't seem human_" the pilot stated, his zoid rumbled agreement._

_Oh Zi no! You my guest are of Earthling stock, I am a Zenobian the figure walked into the light, he was tall; maybe six- five, he stood on two legs in a bipedal fashion and looked vaguely human shaped, but that was where the similarities seemed to end. His skin was metallic and glistened from regular care, his ears looked more like air intakes, the robe he wore covered most of his body, his feet stuck out from underneath its folds and looked like liger type zoid feet, complete with wicked claws, his eyes glowed with an inner light but reflected more intelligence than most zoids Don't be so hasty to judge the intelligence of a zoid my guest, many outlive humans, so their pilots never get to witness the miracles of their zoids, it's like the most beautiful 'chandelier' a human can imagine being switched on, but I am rambling and your partner needs attention_

Kat pressed the accelerator and the Mustang's tyres flung up sand as it turned around, Kat backed off then squeezed again as the tyres grabbed traction, propelling the car forwards and away from the battle scene, she had to go. She couldn't stick around anymore; not with things the way they were, the muscle car roared across the desert and slid to a halt in front of Jhese's hanger. Kat backed the car under the carport that attached onto the big building, killed the engine and jumped out, leaving the keys in the glove-box, she kissed her finger and pressed it to the car's red shell "see you later baby" Kat hobbled away and arrived at the door as Jhese and Cyrus arrived at the property, she slammed the door behind her and struggled up the stairs walked across the ramp and looked down at her Lightning Siax, a gift from her teammates, and she would be leaving them, she faltered for a moment then jumped to land butt first in the seat. The zoid was still in pretty bad shape, Jhese had given up repairs when he found out about her busted leg, focusing instead on Cyrus's Redler, his repairs would have to do.

"Kat! Please don't!" yelled Jhese; Kat looked down and Jhese slammed the door lock "Please!" the big metal bar slid across the door.

"Jhese, open the door or I will" she glimpsed Cyrus sprinting up the stairs. She thumbed a button on the console and the canopy dropped into place as Cyrus gained the ramp "_last warning Jhese, open the door_"

Jhese put on his most stubborn expression "why?"

Cyrus banged on the 'Siax's head "Look Kat I'm sorry"

"_Yeah, you are now, but what about when you sided with your little mercenary buddy, can't take orders? I've got a news flash for you Cyrus, I wont. And I'm not now_" she squeezed the trigger and the twin lasers burned the bar away. Jhese stood in front of the slag.

"Kat please" Kat faltered again, then pushed the controls forwards and slammed through the door, the Lightning Siax was hurt and Kat could feel it through the controls, but it would make it to the next town. Kat didn't look back.

Jhese stared out over the desert where his friend had disappeared… he didn't look up when Cyrus stepped up quietly beside him "this is your fault" he snarled.

"We can still catch her in my 'Eagle" Cyrus offered.

Jhese spun on his foot and lashed out, catching the bigger youth under the chin and knocking him off his feet, Cyrus hit the ground and rolled away but Jhese chased him to stand over him as he tried to get back to his feet "you don't get it do you moron? Even if we catch up to Kat she still won't come back, you made her leave. She won't be back until she's good and ready. And it's your fault" he glared hard at Cyrus who glared back, then the older boy slumped back against the wall

"I am an idiot"

……………

Colby broke the surface with a gulp of fresh air, he lay in the sand for a moment before hauling his other arm free of the ground; looking around he spotted movement and reached over to pull Harvey from the sand. The two pilots hunted silently through the sand until Harvey called Colby over to help excavate a spluttering Jacob from the sand, Jacob immediately dug back into the sand and with the help of Colby and Harvey pulled Dillan free, but the four teammates grew more desperate as they failed to locate Jamie.

Their search soon had most of the 'Wolf's head uncovered, but no Jamie. Colby looked around at his team wondering what to say when the Iron Drill came into view "Jamie!" yelled Jacob "You ass! We've been worried sick about you!"

The head of the Iron Drill opened "Looks more like you've been more worried about finding your toys in the sand-box" Jamie snorted.

"We were looking for you! We thought you had been buried with the rest of us"

"That couldn't happen when our 'leader' ran of after that zoid, which he didn't even catch and left me behind"

Jamie's words hit Colby hard, he had failed; _again_. He sat motionless as the Barrage team decided on how to get the 'Wolf out of the sand, Colby helped as the Iron Drill pulled the zoid out of the sand. The team collected their zoids and, after re-booting the systems on the Rev Shinobi, dragged their zoids back to the base for repairs.

After cleaning out the cockpit of the Saber Wolf Colby went for a run to check for damage, the zoid still handled well, better than most actually, and soon Colby was lost in the rhythm of the run. A noise caught his attention and he looked to the side, a shadow mirrored his zoid's movements, clearly a canine zoid. Colby pushed his zoid to run faster and soon left the strange zoid behind, Colby slowed the zoid as he entered a loose forest and found the zoid beside him again; Colby accelerated but couldn't lose the zoid in the obstacle littered forest, the zoid simply handled too well, then it struck Colby; _not the zoid, the pilot he already has the zoid positioned for the fastest rout through the trees, long before he reaches the obstacles themselves_. Colby tried for himself and after some mistakes found himself starting to pull away from the shadow; _time to find out who you are_, Colby turned his zoid sharply and closed the gap between the two zoids, as he approached the zoid turned and raced away, Colby gave chase and after a long time had the zoid within meters. The zoid applied the brakes and Colby shot past, cresting the hill before hitting the brakes and making the turn to continue the chase. He found the zoid waiting for him beyond the hill, its canopy raised and lit. _You gotta be kidding me _Colby stared in amazement at the old man in the Command Wolf. The _fifty_ year old man in the _standard _Command Wolf. Colby walked his zoid over so it stood cheek to cheek with the old man and his zoid, he opened the canopy and instantly noticed the faded paint, an old zoid too.

"A grand run youngster, made me feel like a rip again, your zoid is definitely one of the quicker ones I've raced over the years" Colby snorted softly and thought to himself _if I'd been in my shadow fox I'd have blitzed you old man_ then it struck him; _he should have blitzed him in the Saber Wolf, the old man was piloting an old Command Wolf unit_.

"Much as it kills me to say it; the only reason I even looked to be in that race was because of the zoids abilities"

The old man laughed, a rich mellow sound "don't sell yourself too short, I've bested Lightning Siax's around here, you just need to choose the battle ground yourself, I couldn't do it anywhere else that I know of because nowhere else seems to limit the 'Siax's speed so much, that and their inability to make tight turns through the trees, I can show you how if you want?"

Colby thought on it and replied "I'll go get my other zoid, my Command Wolf, so I don't have a mechanical edge"

The old man smiled "I'll be waiting sport"

Colby raced back to the base and hailed the Barrage team, leading them into the hanger where he made his announcement.

"Look guys I've come to a kind of realization. I uh… I'm not that great a zoid pilot" the team looked at him curiously "I'm going back to basics, I'll be leaving my newer zoids here if that's okay…you can keep the zoids I gave you, and I'll pay for shed space for my zoids until I get back, please look after them" with that he jumped out of the Saber Wolf's cockpit and grabbed a swag (bed roll), once again walking past the astounded team before jumping into the cockpit of the Command Wolf and leaving his confused team behind.

As he piloted the zoid into the night Colby felt more like a pilot than he had at any point in his life.

………………..

David sat in the Gustav as Jhese, Cyrus and Stalker mobilized their zoids and made last-minute adjustments, the 'Peacemaker' Dragon, Buster Eagle and Gun Sniper were all in top shape; Jhese had seen to that himself, but the team of humans operating those zoids were the variable.

Jhese still hadn't forgiven Cyrus for making Kat leave the team.

Cyrus still hadn't forgiven himself for Kat's departure.

Stalker was a mercenary.

In short; the team was a mess.

David sighed in frustration; the outcome of this battle would be in the air in a best case scenario, he wished there was something he could say to patch up things between Cyrus and Jhese, but neither seemed willing to break free of their shells, or even listen to him.

The judge capsule crashed to the ground sending desert sand and dust flying across the plains to float on the wind to who knew where, even in this day and age much of planet Zi remained unexplored.

David slapped himself and re-focused on the battlefield, the Panther team had just arrived; their distinctive black Gustav had been modded with fiberglass and carbon-fiber to look like a Zaber Fang head, the zoid towed two trailers; one carried a Zaber Fang, while the other carried a portable dock, similar to Jhese's mobile workshop but lacking the mechanical arm, two Zaber Fangs walked alongside the trailer.

"_Well Panther team, you took your time arriving, you are obliged to arrive before the Judge capsule does unless you have a good explanation I will declare the Crew team victors by default._" The Judge folded his arms "_I'm waiting_"

"_Oh sit on it ya dimwit Judge_" came the rude reply.

"_Deliberating…deliberating, databanks do not contain knowledge of such an event, therefore I must accept it as rational. THIS AREA IS A DESIGNATED ZOID BATTLE FIELD. ALL NON-PERSONEL PLEASE LEAVE THE AREA AT ONCE. DANGER! DANGER! THE AREA WITHIN A TWENTY MILE RADIUS OF THIS POINT IS A DESIGNATED ZOID BATTLE FIELD; PLEASE LEAVE!_" The Judge turned its head to survey the area before continuing "_BATTLE MODE: 0982 READY…FIGHT!_"

Jhese looked about wildly _something is wrong!_ The two Zaber Fangs began firing with rapid lasers, attempting to pin down the three Crew team zoids, _the third! _"_Cyrus! The third 'Zaber!_" Jhese flicked on the 'Dragon's new combat system and the crosshairs quickly zeroed on a Zaber Fang and Jhese opened fire; the gattling cannons of the 'Peacemaker' system quickly turned the tides on the 'Zaber making it abandon its attack and sprint off, the second 'Zaber tried to make up for the departure of the first, but Cyrus was already airborne, not a moment too soon; four shots drilled the ground where Cyrus had been pinned down.

"_Oh, now you're in big, BIG trouble_" the Buster Cannons fired twice and an explosion lit up the landscape as the Zaber Fang mounted with the super long range rifle was blown outside the boundaries.

Not to be outdone Stalker charged at the nearest Zaber Fang; bobbing and weaving in an attempt to avoid being shot by his quarry, the Zaber Fang readied its teeth and claws, but the Gun Sniper was all over it; kicking with the powerful anchor claws, biting and scratching. Jhese had to admit that Stalker had gotten better, but the battle wasn't over. Jhese activated the 'Dragon's skates and shot off after the final 'Zaber, Cyrus might have the 'Eagle eyes but Jhese already knew where to find the final enemy zoid.

The footprints stood out on the monitor clear as day, mostly due to the computer highlighting them, using both heat tracers and optic sensors the Peacemaker Dragon could see the trail left by the Zaber Fang. Jhese quickly caught the zoid and engaged; the 'Peacemaker lacked the raw power of the 'Gogu armour, but it slid about the Zaber Fang in an almost wraithlike manner, finally Jhese got the opening he needed and the 'Dragon caught the Zaber Fang by the throat, the 'Zaber's pilot shut his zoid down, ending the match.


	29. Chapter 29

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_The Dark Spiner growled and stretched, testing its repairs, perfection. His pilot sat at his feet; opposite the creature that called itself a Zenobian; a member of the race that created zoids and made them able to reproduce, under certain conditions._

_Yes, in our arrogance we thought our tribe could rule the world with our zoid armies, bring in a new era of peace and prosperity, a golden age. But all we accomplished was to nearly wipe out the Zenobian population, millions died, so many from all tribes that we all simply gave up and went into hiding. Then the humans came, so full of life and mortality, they lived life to the fullest, short attention spans, short lived grudges and short lived in general, we Zenobians came out of our hiding to introduce these new creatures to the beauty of zoids. But humans also have short tempers and some are so despicably self-important that they believe they have the right to rule others, in short Earthlings were so much like ourselves that we went back to our hiding._

The bar exploded.

Beer glasses and bottles that once contained some of the finest liquor on planet Zi became weapons, clubs and projectiles. People hit friends by mistake, chairs were broken over backs and fists flew in many styles, and directions.

Kat slid under a table and rolled out the other side avoiding the chair as it crashed behind her.

"You BITCH! THIEF! I'm gonna skin you, ALIVE!" the bounty hunter threw the table aside and reached for Kat "maybe I'll have some fun first, tho' god only knows how much money we could have made of that farmer" Kat rolled again and evaded his wild grab, this time she planned the roll better and came up on the far side of two brawling hard men, the giant leered and yelled more unmentionable suggestions at her then grabbed the two brawlers and slammed their heads together before he tossed them aside.

"Shit!" Kat cursed and sprinted for the bar, throwing herself over and hunting for a weapon, a hand reached over and caught her waist, the giant bounty hunter's hand was so large that his fingers seemed only millimeters from his thumb as they wrapped around her body, finally she saw her chance and grabbed the hot element from the fryer, holding her lifeline by its power cord she pressed it to the giant's wrist; the man howled and squeezed before letting go and Kat hit the floor, breathless. The giant cursed and stuck his wrist in the ice bin, a look of relief spreading across his face, Kat scrambled on the wet floor; trying to put as much distance between her and the bounty hunter and his team as possible, her movements reminded the giant that she was still about and he pulled his hand from the ice and chased her once again, this time Kat found herself cornered against the bar, with nowhere to run and nothing that even remotely resembled a weapon, the giant grinned and reached for Kat once more then howled as his fingers spasmed.

Kat looked at the old man, he was small and white haired, and as wrinkled as a prune, he wore dark green pants and jacket; tipped with white cuffs, a small white stringy moustache and an immaculately plaited goatee, he was also wildly, raving drunk. Kat's sense of smell reeled from the alcoholic stench the man gave of, he even smelled stronger than Kat who had just scrambled and rolled her way through several varieties of rum and whiskey.

The giant swatted at the old midget, thinking to simply send him flying with his enormous arm, the old drunk midget leaped from his chair and landed on the giant's forearm plucking another hair and making the giant roar with pain, the little man then performed a tight somersault and landed back on his stool, grinning up at the giant. The giant bounty hunter glared back at him still holding his arm.

"You don't 'grab' a lady, it ishn't nishe, uh nice" the little man's speech slurred and he swooned a bit as he stood on the stool, the bounty hunter glared at him then at Kat and back to the old man.

"I can't have a girl who's seen me beaten by another person, so it's your funeral midget" the giant swung his fist at the little man who ducked under the bar to avoid the blow and popped up holding a flute.

"We can't danssss yet shonny, there ishn't any music" with that the old drunk put the instrument to his lips and began piping a lively melody, the giant stared for a moment then roared and lunged, still playing the drunk leapt high and slammed both feet down on the giant's head, propelling it into the bar-top. The little drunk stopped playing and using the flute as a drumstick tapped some more lively beats on the giant's skull "thank you sir, a song needs percussion" the giant rolled, hoping to crush the drunk under his back, but the little man took to the air and slid across the bar-top to continue playing his flute in front of a dumbfounded Kat. The giant rose and the little man stopped playing "you have to sherrinade, um… serenade a girl my friend" the giant grinned and held up a bar stool.

"I ain't interested in her feelings runt, just revenge"

"That is a sad way of living life" the little drunk replied mournfully "females are always so much more cooperative with those they like" the stool whistled through the air and the little man stiffened, Kat gasped as the stool smashed across the bar, the little drunk hadn't stiffened, he had simply moved to pass between the stool's legs, allowing them to shatter around him. The giant gawped in surprise, then choked and slumped as the flute jabbed him in the neck "come young lady, let us go somewhere that you can tell me why an underage person is drinking and starting fights in a bar" with that the little man jumped down from the bar and threaded his way through the brawlers to the door, vaulting the bar Kat followed.

……………….

Kat sat across the fire from Matt Wing, telling her story; the mercenary, her argument with Cyrus, leaving the Crew, she had gone to Margin town where she had gotten her 'Siax repaired, she had then travelled further into the desert where she had come across a farm, the owner was a rich old man, but his money was being lost to damage being caused by wild zoids, upon seeing Kat's 'Siax he had told her about the bounty hunting team he had hired to deal with the rogue zoids, about how he had been unable to contact them for nearly a week and asked her for help, Kat had dealt with every single wild Attack Kat she could find, she had collected a reward from the farmer and taken a heap of spare parts to the town and rented a storage area where she had dumped the components and weapons, and her Lightning Siax, and gone to the bar to find a buyer, that was where the bounty hunters had found her.

"Quite the story young lady" said Matt, whose stench and slurring words had disappeared soon after exiting the bar "so, a 'Siax pilot eh?" Kat nodded "I'll show you something tomorrow, but for now I'm sleepy and you'd probably appreciate a shower. In the trailer, second door on the left. It ain't fancy or anything, but it's clean and so are the towels" Kat nodded and left the fire. Matt Wing sighed "if only I were fifty years younger" and went to sleep.

……………….

Kat stretched and yawned, then gasped.

Standing over her was a Lightning Siax, black with gold trim. Kat scrambled to her feet and backed away from the zoid, the zoid bobbed its head as it gave a rumbling chuckle, so similar to her own 'Siax. Kat stared warily at the zoid.

"_Morning young lady_" came a voice over the speaker "_this is my Lightning Siax_" the head dipped to Kat's level and the canopy opened to reveal a broadly grinning Matt Wing "well, get in. Or am I going to have to show off to myself?"

Kat looked at him suspiciously "where are we going?"

"I'm taking you to the desert where I can steal your valuables and leave you to rot" Matt replied sarcastically "kidding" he assured upon seeing Kat's horrified look "I want to show you something and you'll need to be in your 'Siax to learn it, now get in"

Kat started to climb the 'Siax's head but pulled up short "how do you pilot this zoid anyhow? You're way too short"

"Look between my legs and I'll show you" Matt smirked.

WHACK!!!

Kat slapped Matt hard.

"Ah, my two favorite pass times always seem to get me hurt. Although what could you expect from fighting and making crude jokes about the differences between males and females" the bruising on the side of Matt's face made his grin seem all the more adorable, Kat waited "the beauty of customization, the pedals and control column have been modified for my…did I mention I'm vertically challenged?"

"Vertically challenged?" Kat repeated.

"Short"

"I never would have guessed" Kat let the sarcasm drip. She climbed into the cockpit behind Matt and he closed the canopy and raised his zoids head.

"Hi ho SILVER!!!" Matt yelled and his zoid yawned in a way that clearly begged the question _why me?_

…………………

Kat chased the 'Siax but couldn't seem to catch it, her 'Siax roared in frustration "yeah I know we should be able to catch him" the 'Siax growled "now that's a bit much, how is it my fault that he made an after image" the zoid growled again "hey you fell for it too tin-head" once again they closed the gap on the gold trimmed Lightning Siax, Kat watched hard as the Lightning Siax became four zoids, three of them had to be fakes, Kat fired the Vulcans and swept the fire across all four zoids, they all responded the same way, a slight waver as the bullets passed through, disrupting the air and the after-images.

"_Behind you Kat!_" Kat looked around and found that somehow Matt had once more gotten behind her. Kat's 'Siax yowled in frustration.

"_Okay, I give up. How do you do that?_"

"_I'm not telling until you can catch me, try again_"

………………..

Jhese pounced on the hapless prey and flicked it into the air, opening his mouth to catch it as it fell; Stalker's hand whipped out and caught the biscuit, popping it into his own mouth and munching a few times before giving Jhese a disgusting smile, full of chocolate crumbs and bits of cream. Jhese sighed and leaned back, his appetite gone. He looked up as David rushed into the room his face alive with excitement.

"We have a battle challenge!" he waved the printout victoriously "the Fawkes team, two flying types and a possibility of three ground units; all use flame based attacks, napalm, explosives and lasers"

"They're an elemental team?" Stalker inquired in a bored voice "amazing that they made it past class B"

"They're a damn skillful elemental team" David replied "do you have any weapons that will instantly nullify a fire attack?" Stalker growled but didn't speak "thought so, not many weapons can stop a fire type zoid instantly, and the fact that two of those zoids might be airborne just makes them harder to deal with"

"We go out with guns blazing and blow 'em into next week, how hard could it be?" Stalker grumbled impatiently.

"They are the top scoring team in group A and a victory against us would put them into group S, how's that for hard?" Cyrus walked into the room "which means no solo heroics, we stick together and work as one, even if that means sacrificing individual points" he looked hard at the mercenary "please don't screw us over, it looks bad on you too"

………………..

Jhese sat in Shad's cockpit; it felt good to be wearing the Gogu armour again, the control system responded just the way he liked it and everything seemed so much more…direct.

Looking out over the battlefield Jhese realized that it had been purpose chosen to suit the flying type zoids, not that the Crew team were at a loss for flying zoids; the Buster Eagle soared overhead with Cyrus at the controls. Its incredible canons shone in the afternoon sun. Jhese grinned as he remembered his only visit to a museum; they had a display of Earth artifacts recovered from the landing ships that had dropped the Humans on planet Zi, the display had contained some national emblems; including an American Bald Eagle. Briefly Jhese wondered at how planet Zi had produced creatures similar to those of Earth when it was millions of light-years away.

The present came back as the Judge Satellite hit the ground, the Judge himself gave his usual speech then called "_READY...FIGHT!_"

Cyrus rocketed skyward as two shapes descended towards him side by side; cutting a hard left and turning skyward again to avoid the stream of fire that the leading zoid shot from its mouth, as he passed by the two zoids Cyrus caught a glimpse of the fire slinger; a zoid he had only heard of in stories, fairytales really. The zoid was between medium and large in size category, its magnificent wingspan easily matched or bettered that of his Buster Eagle. The paint scheme was unlike anything that Cyrus had seen on a zoid, the paint seemed to have its own light, a soft crimson glow that both highlighted the zoid up close and made it vanish in the sun, its red and gold colour scheme gave Cyrus a warm sensation and he couldn't tear his eyes off the zoid; the legendary Fire Phoenix.

A small niggle caused Cyrus to roll to the side, not a moment too soon; fire filled the space where Cyrus had been, he could feel the heat as the flames licked past his zoid.

_Clever bastards_, the two zoids had never been side by side, the red Pteramander was so much bigger than the 'Phoenix that Cyrus had believed them to be identical zoids flying side by side rather than staggered by several hundred feet. The Buster Eagle shrieked at the Pteramander as it flew past, the enormous zoid responded with a roar of its own.

……………..

Jhese had only caught a glimpse of the Fawkes team's ground zoid but he had to guess it was the Gun Scorcher; a custom Gun Sniper that packed incinerating bombs, napalm launchers, if reports held true then the zoid's main integrated rifle had been converted to a type of long range flamethrower. Moving cautiously would get Jhese and Stalker burned to a crisp, they needed to stay fast and stay evasive.

Whew, hard week slack Drewbie. Sorry if the style has changed somewhat, can't guarantee the permanance of that change; it just needed to happen to make the story go forwards...

Besides, what is a story without a drunken lecherous master?


	30. Chapter 30

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_The Zenobian watched as the zoid and pilot departed _that soul has big things in its future human; too bad you won't live long enough to see your partner bloom _the ancient being walked the long, lonely path back to its home where it sat down to do what its timeless kind did best; wait. _I will watch over that soul for you.

Shads and Jhese pounded into the ravine with Stalker trailing in his black Gun Sniper, Jhese gave up scanning the ground; if he'd followed the zoid right there wouldn't be anywhere for the 'Scorcher to hide, or run to. He had the flame zoid in a dangerous position for all three zoids, a cornered zoid could cause all sorts of damage to its hunters, and Cyrus was still defending the skies alone, they had to be careful.

Jhese flicked the shields on a moment before the Gogu Dragon leaped in front of the 'Scorcher; the zoid opened fire bathing the electric blue zoid in flames, the pilot cursed as the flames washed over Shads shields, causing minimal damage, but Jhese cursed in a similar fashion, the force behind the flames was enough that he couldn't move the Gogu Dragon forwards to attack, if things stayed like this the 'Scorcher could simply roast Jhese into submission.

………………..

Meanwhile Cyrus was getting confident in the abilities of the Buster Eagle, he eased the controls to the right and watched as the world rolled up from the right side of the canopy, and quickly pulling the controls back Cyrus dropped the Buster Eagle from the sky, the zoid plummeted away from the Fire Phoenix that had been dogging its tail, the 'Phoenix screamed with anger at being thwarted and Cyrus grinned, he pulled to the left and sent the zoid into a slow wide barrel roll, neatly evading the Pteramander's ambush, the 'Eagle reached out as they plummeted by and raked the zoid's flank with its hardened alloy talons.

The Pteramander gave chase; folding its wings back to reduce drag the bigger zoid began to close the gap, Cyrus altered his course and headed for the canyons, sliding through a gap that the bigger zoid had no hope of passing, he jinked the controls; weaving the 'Eagle through the canyon, the Fire Phoenix had to be dealt with and Cyrus hoped his little maneuver would buy him the time to catch the zoid alone.

BABOOM!!!

The canyon trembled as the Pteramander launched shot after shot at the top of the canyon, Cyrus cursed repeatedly as he narrowly avoided the falling debris, the canyon split into three pathways and Cyrus made his move; faking to the far left Cyrus hit full brakes and then nailed the boosters and rocketed skyward, passing just beyond the Pteramander's fearsome cannons. The Buster Eagle then dipped its wing and plummeted once more, this time Cyrus launched the AZ air to air missiles as he hurtled towards the Pteramander; the missiles raced out ahead forcing the bigger zoid to take evasive maneuvers to avoid the projectiles, allowing Cyrus to fall behind the zoid and take its tail. Cyrus smiled as he sighted the Pteramander in the Buster Cannon's crosshairs.

…………….

The two Gun Sniper zoids crashed to the canyon floor; Stalker's black Gun Sniper cutting the flaming assault of the Gun Scorcher short. Jhese sighed in relief and raced forwards to aid Stalker in the takedown. The 'Scorcher lashed out and kicked the black zoid into the canyon wall; the black 'Sniper slid to the ground, but the 'Scorcher wasn't out of trouble yet. Jhese crashed into the red zoid; shoulder charging it into the opposite canyon wall to the one that Stalker had hit, the devil himself charged in behind and hit the red zoid with a flying kick, the black Anchor Claw driving into the zoid's chest. The Gun Scorcher collapsed into Shad's claws, its systems frozen.

Stalker yelled his victory and his zoid echoed him with a metallic roar. A rumbling told him that two airborne zoids were approaching fast, the 'Phoenix and the Pteramander, it had to be. Stalker set his zoid and fired, the two forearm mounted cannons repeating loudly as they launched shot after shot into the air.

"_Stalker NO!!!_" Jhese yelled too late, the two zoids rocketed overhead, screaming as the projectiles slammed into their metal stomachs, the lead zoid, the bigger Pteramander wore the brunt of the attack, but was tough enough to stay airborne, the second zoid wore slightly less, but was smaller in size; the shots hit wings and engines, causing the Buster Eagle to crash to the ground, all combat systems frozen or worse "_you IDIOT!!! You shot down Cyrus!_" Jhese yelled at Stalker.

"_He should have been finished with them already, it's not my fault he's a lousy pilot_" Stalker replied defensively.

Shad's console bleeped "_Aw hell, Stalker, run!!!_" Jhese yelled as he turned and sprinted down the canyon, Stalker stood dumbfounded for a moment trying to puzzle Jhese's behavior, then his own console bleeped "oh crud!" Stalker cursed as he spotted the incoming incinerating bombs, he kicked the Gun Sniper into a run, but the bombs were simply too close.

Jhese watched as the canyon lit up, flames spewing from all crevices and tunnels "fool" he muttered, Shads huffed in agreement. "Well partner, what now?" Jhese asked. Shads growled and clawed the ground "yeah, I guess surrender isn't an option, we need to come up with a foolproof plan if we want to win though" Shads squawked and Jhese nodded "I don't have a better idea"

…………….

Ember Fawkes searched the ground for the final zoid; the Judge hadn't called it a match so the zoid was still down there somewhere, hiding in the canyons, the zoid had no long range weapon so all Ember and her partner Karin Chung had to do was stay high and shoot anything that moved, she just hoped her grounded teammate would keep inside his zoid _typical male_ Ember smiled, Hamish Firewall was a big boy and could look after himself, although those two punks had taken him down.

…………………..

Karin spotted the movement first and spilled air from her zoid's wings, dropping into a steep dive, within twenty meters of the top of the canyon she leveled out and dropped the powerful warheads into the natural pathway.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The canyons exploded; dirt, rocks debris and dust kicked into the air by the powerful blasts. _Ha! Dodge that ya punk! These bombs can completely level any small natural feature, even solid rock!_

CLUNK!

Karin looked about in panic; _what the hell was that?_

…………………

Ember stared down at the two zoids in shock; the electric blue zoid had used Karin's bombs against her, the zoid had activated shields and boosters to ride the blasts and take Karin's back. Ember spilled air from her zoid's wings and dove after the two zoids, a sinking feeling in her gut told her she would be too late.

……………….

"WAHOOO!!! YOU ROCK BUDDY! Hold on tight cause here we go!" Shads responded to Jhese's compliments with a snort "oh don't give me that, if you could blush you would" Jhese punched the activator and both zoids lit up with electricity. Shads roared and the Pteramander screamed.

RATATATATATATATATATATAT!

"Damn it, sonofabitch!" Jhese cursed as both zoids crashed frozen to the ground, the Fire Phoenix had been too close and he had paid for it with the match. The red and gold zoid landed nearby.

Ember walked over to the young pilot as he dropped from the cockpit to the ground, _so young_ she covered her surprise and sauntered over, the swagger of a victorious pilot.

Jhese looked away from his zoid to the Phoenix pilot, she was definitely a she, but why female pilots, flying zoid pilots especially, chose to wear tight leather was beyond Jhese, men generally wore bulky cotton or wool lined clothing, usually leather, but there was no way she was hiding a lining in that getup, she had to be frozen.

Ember took of her helmet and puffed her brown hair; she clearly hadn't gotten that involved in the battle; with the exception of a small amount of dog-fighting with the Buster Eagle she had done very little work, she kind of felt as though she had stolen points off her teammates "nice job kiddo" she said as she ruffled Jhese's hair "not many people have managed to drive the Fawkes team to such a repair bill"

"I'll bet ours is a match for it" Jhese replied

Ember smiled "I've never seen anyone ride a blast-wave like that…" she looked questioningly at Jhese.

Jhese scratched the back of his head "come to think of it neither have I"

"I'll look forwards to seeing you in the future kid" with that Ember walked away.

…………………..

Kat sat in the cockpit, frustrated again.

Matt Wing's teachings were slow to say the least, he would run a maneuver against her again and again until she could defeat it, even if she managed to replicate the move the exercise would continue until she beat it; and then Matt would begin to instruct her on how the move was performed.

The current lesson involved Matt and his zoid running at a cliff with Kat and her 'Siax in hot pursuit, somehow Matt could make the turn at the last possible minute and Kat would be left to slam into the wall, only Kat wasn't having any of that she was leaping to hit the wall with all four feet and bouncing back, among other things.

"Look Kat I don't care if you slam into the wall or not, the idea is to beat the move. Until you can do it we go no further" Matt looked out from under his open canopy, he gave her his gravest teacher look and Kat had trouble remembering him as the perverted drunk who had saved her honor.

"Fine" Kat snarled "let's run it again" her canopy hissed shut and she waited for Matt to move away before falling in behind him, _how can I compete with that turn, damnit! The idea isn't even to compete with the move it's to defeat it..._ "That's it" Kat breathed.

Matt Wing craned his head to look at Kat; she was slightly off to his left, just in case he checked to the right before he made his move, Kat's zoid sped along slightly to his right _eh?_ Matt did a quick double re-take _crud the wall_ Matt hauled back on the controls and punched the thrusters; boosting his Lightning Siax straight up the wall. Kat followed; hot on the heels of yet another chase. Matt rockets the Lightning Siax across the canyon wall with Kat hard on his tail; both zoids are parallel to the ground, suddenly Matt pulls the turn and his zoid drops to the canyon floor, Kat over shoots and turns slightly skyward, her zoid disappearing over the lip of the cliff.

"Yeah, I know he's back that way" Kat stated in reply to her Lightning Siax's querying growl, the 'Siax huffed "Plan? Who do you think I am? I'm going off gut feeling here buddy" the 'Siax yowled in dismay "Just follow my lead…like you have a choice" with that Kat swung the speedy zoid back to the canyon.


	31. Chapter 31

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_The Imperial army watch as his platform rises into the arena. Nerves, the 'Spiner can feel them, they aren't his, his pilot is packing them, fine thing to be on the front lines but audiences scare the spit out of him, how amusing, the Dark Spiner registers the blow and reacts but his limbs don't move the pilot has frozen at the controls, pretty soon he falls unconscious. The Dark Spiner screams in rage and agony as the Rev Raptors tear its armour to shreds._

Planet Zi moved between two suns; performing a figure eight that enabled it to circle around both, this meant that part of the cycle would be spent inside the gravity fields of both suns, at this time of year planet Zi had no nightfall, and tides ran wild. Huge king tides, immense water retreat and blistering heat put zoid battles on pause as the weather was simply too unbearable to cope with.

Jhese sat in the air conditioned workshop of his hanger, the only air conditioned part of his home, an incentive that helped him to stay working rather than crash out like everyone else, even so during this time of year he was pretty much confined to the small workroom, and only able to work on smaller components, car motors being the biggest the little space could handle. As he tinkered with the smoke generator from a customer's Command Wolf Jhese reflected on the past year; things hadn't gone so well for the Crew team since losing to the Fawkes team, Stalker had been sacked after repeating his comment on Cyrus's piloting ability, to Cyrus, several more loses had seen them bumped down a rank to Class B where the return of David's Command Wolf had stopped their plummeting scores, they were able to begin making money again, but even David couldn't replace the gaping hole left by Kat. The Buster Eagle was in for repairs and Cyrus was back in his freshly repaired Redler E, Jhese had given it the E for evolution; Fixing the zoid had involved a complete structural rebuild and new flight gear, a ruined Raynos had proved an inexpensive donor for the engine and parts, topped with a sleek red and black paint job the zoid looked and performed a treat.

The comm. Buzzed and Jhese fished for the remote, finding it in one of his tool trays (he is a guy after all) Jhese punched the button to bring up the video on the monitor. Commander Hunt appeared on the screen.

"_Ah, finally, a member of the Crew team, your captain's residence seems rather deserted at the moment, just don't see this as a last resort but I need the Crew team_" Commander Hunt and Jhese had never really seen eye to eye, but after Jhese had sacrificed his zoid to save the Commander's Shield Liger, the two had become more civil.

"Cyrus is with David at the mall, they have air con that doesn't cost us, what can I do for you?" Jhese inquired.

"_You know the town known as Mabel?_"

Jhese went rigid for a moment but forced himself to relax "Actually yes"

Commander Hunt studied him for a moment before continuing "_Well, there are some ruins near Mabel where a group of bandits have made their lair, one in particular you should be familiar with is an individual known as Darius, I can't get enough pull to have the Blitz team scores held in Class S, but I can manage a Class B holding for the duration of this mission. What do you say, up for some Indiana Jhones stuff?_"

Jhese had no idea who Indiana Jhones was but that wasn't the foremost question on his mind "payment?"

"_Yes, we do plan to '_hire'_ your team. So can I count on your help?_"

"I'll ask Cyrus, but I think we can come to the party" Jhese replied.

"_Looking forward to working with you again civilian_" the Commander saluted and the screen went blank. Jhese flopped down on the couch to think; only two days remained of the blistering heat, when Cyrus got back they would call the Commander, probably a three day trip to the ruins so the heat would be a day gone before they had to go into battle with Darius's people, but just in case…they needed an advantage.

Jhese's eyes fell on the fridge and an idea bloomed.

………………..

The ten Gustav zoids rolled along in single file, each one laden down with trailers carrying zoids, ammunition and supplies, bringing up the rear came two hover cargo zoids, both were carrying weapons, armour and C.A.S. arming bridges. Without counting the transport zoids Jhese had identified thirty zoids, many of which walked in the line to save space for more equipment, both Jhese and David walked their zoids alongside Cyrus in the Gustav, the transporter carried three trailers; Cyrus's Redler shared a trailer with several boxes of ammunition and a crate with some of the Crew team's extra weapons, the second trailer housed the portable re-arming and re-charging station and mechanical arm, the final trailer was an agreement with Commander Hunt, a container chocked full of military weaponry, in exchange one of the Hover Cargo zoids carried Shad's C.A.S. armours, the Peacemaker and Ironmonger systems; Thomo had rocked up after Commander Hunt's call and demanded Jhese go with him, after leaving a video message on Cyrus's answering machine Jhese had followed, Thomo had presented the Ironmonger armour. The dark blue armour was made up heavily of machineguns, cannons and gattling cannons. Starting from the head with its two cheek mounted micro lasers, the shoulders carried dual heavy gattling cannons each; these weighed so much that the 'Dragon was forced to stay on all fours, the armour even reinforced the suspension and mobility parts, nullifying the problems that plagued Panzer units, each foreleg also carried a small shield generator which, when combined with the main generator between the shoulders, created an almost impenetrable shield. The chest carried a single magneto cannon, capable of drawing the grains of ground and sand from around the zoid which were then supercharged to be sent flying at the enemy, a fearsome weapon that could strip paint, plastic and hardened alloys from a zoid's hide, its weakness was distance with an effective range of only one hundred meters. The rear legs carried pivoting small machine guns that would randomly fire until de-activated, the tail possessed the only thing that could be described as a close range weapon; the blade off a Redler zoid. The actual armour was thick as walls and bulky too, when equipped Shads resembled a Cannon Tortoise more than a Dragon.

Commander Hunt trotted his Blade Liger over to Jhese in the Gogu Dragon "_Morning Jhese_" he said sharply, but not unkindly.

"_Commander_" Jhese replied shortly.

"_Ah well, I am sorry to hear about your recent demotion to class B and as something of a warrior myself I thought I could toss you some tips_"

"_Phhht! Ha, ha, ha! Oh damn that's funny, something of a warrior, you'd want to be something more than that to hit Commander Rank wouldn't you? I think what you're trying to say is 'look I'm a Commander, _you_ are a novice, let me give you some advice that might stop you getting hammered out on the field!' am I close?_"

The Commander's face lit up as the ice broke "_That about sums it up kiddo, you up for those tips?_" Jhese nodded "_Good for you. Well my first tip would be stop trying to do a job you aren't suited to, every team has a rogue fighter, but it isn't you. You need to do what you do best and stop trying to fill in for Kat, a team doesn't particularly need a rogue, but they do need that supportive team player, you do fine on your own, really, but you don't have the speed to return to your teammates aid if need be, and you won't let an enemy go until they're defeated, that's all good when you're teammate is right there with you, but not when you're ten miles from them, yeah?_"

Jhese nodded "_So I should just stick with David or Cyrus?_"

"_In a nutshell…yes. Cyrus and David can rumble fine, but with you sticking close to either one of them, well your zoid lends brute force that their zoids lack, their zoids have the firepower that your zoid lacks, Cyrus is too hard to stay with, so I'd suggest sticking with David_"

The procession kept moving and Jhese walked quietly by the Blade Liger mulling over what the Commander had told him. Mable town soon came into sight as a small smear on the horizon, then a small duty smear on the horizon, it soon became evident that the quiet town of Mable was witnessing some action.

"_Alright troops, form up! Speedsters get out there and do what you can until the heavy hitters arrive_" the large contingent of Command Wolves raced off with David amongst them, the Liger units quickly took up a run, they would be the heavy firepower until the Gordos zoids and single Gogulas could arrive. Jhese and Shads ran in tight formation with the Ligers, led by Commander Hunt in his Blade Liger, the 'wolves had already reached the town and reports were starting to filter back, slowly forming a picture of the scenario. Bandits were attacking the town, mostly cannon fodder type zoids, a few Command Wolves, one Zaber Fang and three Dark Horns.

"_Jhese, stick with us, I know your zoid can reach higher speeds, but It's a firefight in there for the moment and your Gogu Dragon doesn't have any firearms_" the Blade Liger ran to the front of the pack as they neared the town gates "_Shit, we need to get these fools out of the town ASAP! They're tearing the place to pieces, okay, new plan! SHIELDS UP!_"The ten Liger Zoids and one Gogu Dragon snapped their shields up. The zoids swept into the town and past the ranks of Command Wolves, shots glanced off the shields as they closed with the Bandits, at the last possible second Commander Hunt dropped his shields and sent the power to the blades, the weapons carved through the zoids that they touched, an Iguan zoid attacked the Blade Liger head on but bounced off the round face to fall into the path of the blades, that was the last Jhese saw before he and Shads were swept into the fight. Jhese dropped the shields and lit up Shad's Electro Talons the Gogu Dragon put them to good use; standing on his hind legs Shads slashed left and right, knocking the smaller zoids like Iguans and Molgas aside, putting the zap on a Command Wolf and latching onto a Dark Horn, the black zoid bucked and twisted but couldn't dislodge Shads from his perch. Jhese waited until the zoid was within range of its teammates then fired, the Dark Horn fell to the ground, taking several smaller bandit zoids with it, the remaining bandits fled racing from inside the town out into the desert. Jhese surveyed the town, for a battle between some fifty zoids the collateral was not so bad, only one building had been destroyed and bullet holes riddled several others but the main damage seemed to be the zoid ruins that lay about the town, the wreaked zoids blocked streets, building entrances and some peoples homes, but they had the power to drag them away.

Jhese jumped down from Shad's cockpit and walked towards some of the townspeople, he hailed them and one came forwards to talk. Commander Hunt walked up beside him "Your new zoid is an amazing beast young man" he stated quietly. The man stopped in front of the pair.

"Thank you so much, they came and demanded money again, we tried to refuse but we only have labour zoids, nothing to really fight with…we tried, but our zoids got totaled in the desert"

"Don't worry, we have come to-" Commander Hunt was cut off as a commotion broke out behind him; a woman was running about with an axe hitting zoids and keeping the soldiers at bay with wild swings.

"GET OUT OF HERE WITH THOSE METAL DEATH MACHINES!!! HOMEWREAKERS! MURDERERS!" she swung in a wide arc forcing the soldiers away from her as she hit another zoid.

"Who is that woman?" inquired Commander Hunt quietly.

"Crazy May, she lives in the desert, just south of here, lost her husband to the Back-draft wars, zoid pilot, her son ran away to become a zoid pilot, I run the bank here and the boy still sends her money, but she won't touch it, blames zoids for everything that goes wrong, probably ran all the way here with that axe" one of the soldiers ducked in and grabbed the axe and pushed the woman back, she ran at him looking to retrieve the axe, he raised his fist to strike and doubled as Jhese slammed into his stomach. Several soldiers grabbed the woman, restraining her from further damage, the soldier grabbed Jhese's shirt and hauled him forwards, lifting his fist once more, another hand grabbed his wrist.

Commander Hunt smiled at Jhese.

"Well son, let's hear why you tackled Amound here"

"She's my mother"

Yeah, y'all needed that. Feel free to review, I do so love it when people tell me they h8 my stnking crapp...or you could be nice. It's really up to you, all stories could use improvement in some way, maybe you picked up on a flaw in the story, I'd love to track em all down. Anyway, till next time...LATERS!!!


	32. Chapter 32

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_The Dark Spiner sat under its restraints; metal locks held down its ankles, a metal collar held its head up, preventing it from swinging about, the same held true of its tail, scientists walked past and back again, never stopping to check on the zoid. The Dark Spiner had been this way for several months while the scientists had tried to find the source of his freeze before the Rev Raptors, then they had simply given up and he had been left trussed up to collect dust._

Jhese watched anxiously as his mother's eyes fluttered open, she looked about blearily for a moment before her eyes fell on Jhese; she studied him quietly for several seconds before she whispered "Jhese?" Jhese found tears welling up in his eyes, he had been in a right mad state when he left home, screaming at his mother and declaring he would never come home, during his three years as a runaway Jhese had thought of his mother often, but he didn't think his absence would prove this hard on his mother, money hadn't helped matters, she just couldn't function without those she loved "Jhese?" she enquired again.

Tears welled up in the fifteen-year-olds eyes and he hugged his mother "I'm so sorry Mum!"

May Rivers held her Son as he cried, finally Jhese stopped and May pushed him back to see him better, he was much taller than when he left, still scrawny, but he had a wiry strength about him "Please tell me you have come home to stay Jhese" her eyes bore into Jhese's; pleading and questioning "please tell me you wont mess with these zoid creatures anymore" Jhese stood, pulling from her arms, it felt as though he was pulling his own arms from his shoulders, Jhese sighed.

"Mum-"

"JHESE RIVERS! I will not go through more pain, I cannot, will not allow you to die like your father!"

"Mum!" Jhese stood as tall as his frame would allow "You can't protect me from everything, and when you do you stop me protecting others, I'm part of a team; they need me. People are being preyed on by bandits, our village; as long as I can help I will help"

May looked up at her son, he looked so much like his father when she first met him, a thin person who radiated energy, Jhese didn't have the soft aura his father did, at the moment the air around him rippled with his determination, his aura pulsed far stronger than Mugan's ever did, and when Mugan put his mind to something it got done. But Mugan was dead and would remain dead. She couldn't let Jhese meet the same fate "Jhese, do you even know what a war is? Zoids were made for wars, and as long as people still pilot them wars will be fought; the Back-draf-" Jhese cut her off.

"The Back-draft is already starting fights! I have to help stop them doing to others what they did to dad! They have to be stopped, and I'm going to help bring their demise"

Cyrus pushed up from the wall he had been leaning against and walked away, this could go on for some time, and clearly Jhese would be in no mood to help with some defensive planning. So let him be seemed the best option, he had moved about halfway down the hall when the door slammed loudly. Cyrus turned to see Jhese open the door and yell "The difference is I WILL make a difference!"

Jhese slammed the door and spun on his heel, his eyes meeting Cyrus's, Jhese instantly deflated, his expression changing from defiant to completely hangdog "I only left to make things easier" he said in a much quieter voice, Cyrus walked over to his friend and teammate, Jhese had never really spoken of his family and the team had rarely pushed. So soon after a war many kids were orphaned, so many that people just assumed, Cyrus had assumed Jhese was one too.

An explosion rocked the building and both Jhese and Cyrus were knocked off their feet, getting up quickly both bolted for their zoids.

They found them outside, being defended by David, already in his Command Wolf; David was firing on some Molga zoids trying to pass through the secondary gate.

Jhese leaped up Shad's leg and into his cockpit, pressing the activate sequence he waited while the zoid powered up.

…………………

Commander Hunt growled with his zoid, the Zaber Fang got shakily back to its feet and roared defiantly "_Or WHAT ya punk?_" yelled the Commander "_This town is under Zoid Battle Commission and national military protection, are you really that stupid?_"to answer his question zoids began cresting the hills just outside of town, Zaber Fangs, Red Horns, Dark Horns, Command Wolves, Rev Raptors and Dibison. It was a formidable array of zoids to be facing with only thirty military zoids, plus the Crew team and a handful of farm-modified zoids. Commander Hunt surveyed his warriors, the Military units stood grouped in their formations ready to mobilize' ten Command Wolves stood at the ready David stood with them making eleven, ten Shield Ligers, five with MkII upgrades and four with DSR systems, plus his own Blade Liger, Jhese stood next to him in the Gogu Dragon, a fearsome beast that seemed a match even for his own zoid, at least in close combat. Three Pteras zoids with strike bombs, two military spec Raynos zoids and Cyrus in what he called the Redler Evolution. Four Gordos zoids and one Gogulas formed the heavy hitters and the farm-modified Spino Sapper zoids completed the militia. "Wolves and Liger units, move out, airborne zoids, get your asses in the sky, Spino Sappers stick with the Gordos Units, you'll patrol the walls, Captain Zane, you stand by the gate, only offer assistance if it comes within half your Gogulas's firing range, got it? Make it happen" he spotted May Rivers racing out to confront the bandits, armed with a farm hoe "Where did that woman get the farming implement from?"

Jhese spotted his mother just as the Ligers hit the enemy frontline.

May Rivers ran at the Dark Horn zoid swinging the hoe at its ankle joint, her arms jarred as the metal head struck the armour covering the weakest spot in the zoid's armour, she swung again regardless "Murderers! Death Dealers! SCUM!!!" the Dark Horn turned its massive head to look at the woman, May ducked under its belly and swung again, the head of the hoe breaking as it struck the inside of another ankle joint; sparks flew from the damaged joint, throwing May down to the ground, the Dark Horn stormed forwards and turned aiming its Gattling Cannons at the prone woman "scum!" May hissed. An electric blue zoid landed in front of her before rearing up on its hind legs to shove the cannons into the air, May watched as electricity raced over the zoids arms, down its claws and across the body of the Dark Horn zoid, the colossus crashed to the ground where it lay prone except for the occasional electrical twitch, the electric blue zoid turned and May caught its shape, a dragon, like a small Gogulas combined with a Liger zoid. The cockpit on the zoid opened and a figure stood up "Mum! Get in NOW!!!" May glared up at her son.

"You get out of here Jhese; you're too young to be fighting!"

A massive clawed hand bit into the ground in front of May before scooping her off her feet and into the air, the zoid ran on two legs, making its way from the battlefield. May was gently lowered to the ground in front of the villagers "Tie her up so she doesn't get back to the battlefield" her son yelled before turning his zoid and heading towards the gate, May watched as the zoid turned away from the gate and running up the ramp into the Hover Cargo zoid, the villagers restrained a more placid May with ropes, she thought Jhese had given up the fight.

The door to the Hover Cargo slid closed behind Jhese as he secured the Gogu Dragon to the Maintenance Deck "Gogu armour eject, requesting new system Ironmonger!" the reply came as the hatches rotated and mechanical arms reached for the Dragon's armours "_Gogu armour ejecting, please stand by for system Ironmonger_" the arms disconnected the electric blue parts and withdrew back into the hatches and rotating once more. The new hatches locked into place and mechanical arms began attaching the heavy blue armour to the zoid, finally the heavy nine barrel dual gattling cannons were lowered and clasped into place on each shoulder, the Ironmonger system was complete. "_System Ironmonger has been successfully installed, preparing to eject zoid in position 227be mobilizing Hover Cargo_"

May watched in horror as the Hover Cargo exited the village through the gates, she began struggling against the ropes that held her, to no avail, the villagers were farmers who tied cows, sheep and goats to prevent movement, the bindings held true.

Commander Hunt cursed, even though his Liger was cutting through the enemy zoids like butter they kept attacking. A Hover Cargo rolled onto the ground with shields raised, the side hatch opened and a blue zoid was rolled out of the shell, the zoid sat on the hatch for a moment before being unceremoniously dumped off the back, the Hover Cargo closed the hatch as it rolled on, leaving the battleground and the new zoid behind, its shield flaring as shots peppered them. The new zoid roared and positioned itself to face the hoards of enemy zoids, Jhese's voice shouted over the Comm. Systems "_All Battle Commission zoids hold the line, preparing to fire!_" the twin gattling cannons lowered into place, the machine guns mounted on the rear legs swiveled to face forwards the cheek mounted mini lasers adjusted their aim and the chest mounted Magneto Cannon began charging, shots rattled on the three layers of energy shield as the enemy zoids attempted to knock the zoid down before it was ready, but the shields held firm, suddenly a cloud of cold air enveloped the zoid before the shields dropped and the zoid began firing, enemy zoids were mowed down under the incredible assault power of the Ironmonger Dragon, the zoid didn't over-heat thanks to the cold mist that hovered around the zoid, explosions rocked the desert as the assault continued, zoids burst into flames and others simply disappeared. The cold mist began to fade and the insane shelling stopped, the shields hummed back into place and the zoid became still, yet still more zoids swarmed over the hill, smaller zoids; Hell Runners and Attack Kats charged at the blue zoid attacking the shields even as the cold mist once again enveloped the zoid.

Jhese cursed, even with the refrigerating gases the zoid overheated, all he had accomplished was to delay the inevitable, Shads would need some time before he could launch another assault and the small zoids that attacked his shields clearly had no intention of giving him that time, the Commanders units were no help as the enemy zoids had them well matched, quantity enough to overpower quality, the shields screamed again and again as attacks rained down on them, they would only stand up to so much more, Jhese needed a miracle.

"_RANDOM CLAW!!!_" zoids were swept aside by the brutal strikes "CRAZY LASER!!!" more zoids were blown away by the next attack. Jhese looked about for his rescuer, the voice sounded familiar, a cheetah type zoid landed in front of him and became a whirlwind of destruction, smashing enemy zoids to bits as it moved, Jhese knew that zoid, recognized the black paint with maroon trim.

Kat had returned.

Okay, I'm slack, these things need time to write no matter how persistant the inspiration is, if I don't spend the time writing it don't happen, so I appologise to those who need their fix. Drewbie slack.


	33. Chapter 33

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_The Dark Spiner looked about; strange men had entered the lab, men hadn't entered the lab in years. They poked about and left the room carrying equipment until one of them shone his light on the restrained zoid "hey guys check it out, an old 'Spiner right here in republican territory" the others wandered over to look "Lets take it. An imperial zoid like that would be a rarity, could sell high"_

Kat landed her Lightning Siax in front of the blue zoid that she could only guess was Jhese's Shads, the 'Siax leaped strait up to avoid the shots fired by a Dark Horn, spinning and firing with its twin lasers "_Behold! The Lightning Siax RS! That's Random Special baby; watch and learn!_" the Lightning Siax multiplied under its acceleration, leaving after-images that hovered for moments before fading into oblivion, Kat had gained some serious control of her zoid, the 'Siax weaved in and out of the smaller zoids damaging many and destroying others. Jhese realized that Commander Hunt was right; he couldn't replace Kat as a rogue warrior, Shads simply couldn't keep pace with a properly piloted Lightning Siax.

The console beeped "Oh, good thing someone's watching your temperature buddy" Jhese joked and Shads shook his head in amusement "_Alright people, clear the way!!!_" Jhese dropped the shields and waited for his allies to get behind him, holding the enemy from further pressing an attack on Jhese's zoid made it a balancing act but formations were second nature to the well drilled troops.

The assault once again tore through the masses of enemy zoids; crippling and annihilating the metal giants, but they kept coming, streaming out of the deserts to join the assault on the little town. Commander Hunt grabbed the remote activator and pressed the button. Missiles soared overhead of the warring zoids a call came over the comm. System "_Commander Hunt, what the hell is that?_" the voice suggested Jhese.

"_Tracking Missiles; they're homing on the transmitters that control each battalion_" Jhese appeared on the screen looking relieved.

"_You mean they're all remote controlled_"

"_You didn't think they were?_" the Commander asked in shock.

"_Sir, these zoids are attacking my home, quite frankly I didn't care about the pilots_" Jhese gave his most determined look, unsure if the Commander could see it or not and continued "_I grew up here_"

Commander Hunt nodded and watched as the airborne zoids flew overhead to escort the deadly shower, _an attitude like that had gotten him into the military career; he didn't want the same for anyone. _

………………….

Cyrus flew alongside the missiles ready to attack anything that tried to stop them, but all the controlled zoids seemed to be on the ground, masses of them, heading for the village; clearly a trap.

The ruins soon came into view, a defensive perimeter had been set up around the area, complete with Hound Soldiers and Command Wolves; both armed with anti-aircraft weaponry, the Pteras zoids flew ahead of the missiles and launched their own rockets, a defensive wall that would make it nearly impossible to hit all the homing missiles. The ground zoids began looking to the skies as the Pteras zoids peeled away "_YeeeeeeeeaaaaaHAW!_" yelled Cyrus "_You mutts wont be fetching these missiles!_" he spilled air and the Redler dropped under full Raynos power towards the ground, passing the departing Pteras zoids and overtaking the missiles, he snapped the wings out and leveled off, spraying the canine zoids with machine gun fire and blowing them away with the Mach three sonic booms that rippled of his zoid, the missiles thundered in behind him, blasting the command tower that stood above the ruins.

The tower buckled and collapsed, but still the missiles rained down, smashing the area and the zoids within it. Cyrus circled back to check the damage and noticed the tougher Hound Soldiers digging out of the debris "_Ah hell, Commander. We've failed. The zoids are still functioning_"

………………………

"…_the zoids are still functioning_" Cyrus's voice reported the news at the same time as his flight Lieutenant.

"_Not here they aren't, maybe they're manned?_" the Commander spread the co-ordinates to the troops. The flight Lieutenant reported back first.

"_Zoid piloting confirmed human_"

…………………..

The Hover Cargo rolled in to collect Jhese as the army moved off in the direction of the ruins. He patched into Kat's comm. System while the armour change was made "_Kat!!! I'm so glad you're back! Have you spoken to Cyrus yet? Or Dave?_" Shads roared a greeting.

"_Honestly Jhese, you're the first one I've opened contact with since I got here, with the exception of gloating to everyone about my new zoid modifications_" Kat's voice began to get fuzzy as the armour was removed and replaced "_How are Cyrus and Dave?_"

The Gogu systems started lighting up on the display, all clear "_We got rid of Stalker; he actually shot Cyrus down in a match, and we've dropped down to class B, getting David back in action was the only thing that stopped us sliding further_"

"_Gee that blows_" Kat stated as the catapult positioned Jhese; ready to fire him into the Liger ranks "_Looks like I'm not replaceable after all_"

"_Never believed it for a second_" the Gogu Dragon was fired into the air _WHOAH! _Jhese gasped _so this is what Bit Cloud sees before a battle_ Shads hit the ground running and accelerated into the Liger ranks, right next to Commander Hunt "_You knew she'd be here didn't you, you found her, that's why you gave me all that advice_"

"_Yeah, um surprise. I seriously needed a crack team and with Kat on your team I believe you are a class S team, not solely because of Kat but because you mesh so well when you're together_" Kat pulled in beside Jhese "_Ah, here she is. And where have you been training young Miss? Those moves were something else_"

"_I actually trained under an old pervert named Matt Wing, even though he's a drunken whoring, adulterous, violent leech he's an incredible pilot and warrior he-_"

"_Matt Wing; the Lightning Siax pilot? You met Matt Wing?_" the Commander questioned in surprise.

"_That bad?_" Kat asked.

"_Bad? Hell no; you've been training with the Zen master of speed, it's actually quite incredible, he's one of only three warriors to best Jack Cisco_"

"_And all this time I just thought he was an insane old warrior_"

"_Well, he is that_"

The zoids began to close on the ruins, passing hundreds maybe a thousand unmoving zoids. Jhese looked longingly at the zoids, not just parts; these were complete zoids with no damage whatsoever, a fortune could be made from selling all these units.

"_We'll see Jhese_" stated Commander Hunt "_But we have more pressing matters first_" the first signs of a battle began to appear and the units arranged themselves into two formations; Liger units took the front where their shields would take the brunt of any offered attacks. The Command Wolves fell in behind the bigger Ligers, ready to provide the firepower that many Liger units lacked, the Gogulas and Gordos units had been left back at the village to provide a just in case defense.

Commander Hunt gave the command "_Ready yourselves!_"


	34. Chapter 34

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_Countless battles lined the next few months of the Dark Spiner's awareness; thieves, bandits and brigands. These men were killers and cut throats they stole from anyone. Rich or poor it made no difference, they travelled and they stole. Finally they pulled the tarp off the zoid and the Dark Spiner gazed around the sales room._

Jhese watched as the Hound Soldiers charged from the ruins, a tougher version of the Command Wolves; Hound Soldiers were another popular choice for zoids pilots, only a recent design the Hound Soldier sported a full lightweight armour that the Command Wolf variants had until recently always lacked, they were every bit as fast as the original design and packed a harder punch than almost all other Command Wolf variants. The weaponry was integrated with the chassis making them customizable for greater power, unlike the detachable twin cannons of the old model. Inexpensive and reliable the Hound Soldier was fast replacing the Command Wolf as a favorite for rookie pilots.

Alongside the Command Wolves this little force would prove a good match for the ZBC's own Command Wolves and Liger units.

……………….

Kat ignited the boosters on the Lightning Siax; leaving a trail of after-images and dust in her wake. A lone Command Wolf charged at her zoid, aiming to hit her with its double cannons.

A flick of the wrist and the 'Siax rocketed past the shots, streaking directly at the zoid.

The Command Wolf pilot realized his error and attempted to brace for the strike.

"_RANDOM BLAST!!!_" Kat yelled as she shot past, the sonic boom rippled off the 'Siax's armour, generating an immense force that blew the Command Wolf out of its crouch and off its feet.

A Hound Soldier raced up on her left, from behind no less, its melee lances primed to rip at the 'Siax's flank "_Not today buster!_" Kat crowed and weaved the controls in a smooth motion, the zoid leaving after-images as it rocketed about; the Hound Soldier pilot braked as he found himself being circled by several Lightning Siax zoids "_lets see the Random Claw again!!!_" all five Lightning Siax zoids turned and leaped at the Hound Soldier together. The 'Hound pilot slashed at three of the attacking 'Siax zoids with its melee lances, the images disappeared, the remaining two images slashed down with their claws raking both sides of the Hound Soldier zoid and leaving score-marks to prove their realism.

…………..

Jhese charged a Hound Soldier that was battling a Shield Liger DSR and latched on with Shad's Electro Talons; shocking the zoid into shutdown. Shads released the energy and the 'Hound fell to the ground, too late Jhese noticed the immense zoid that had leveled a pair of Buster Cannons at his zoid.

Jhese lashed out at the booster switch but Shads acted first; slamming up the shields moments before the shots connected. The blast hit the shields and blasted the Gogu Dragon through the air, Jhese pivoted the controls and the 'Dragon used its tail to spin its body so its shields hit the looming building first.

The shields were already spent after wearing the cannon fire and evaporated on contact with the wall, leaving the zoid to smash through and shutting down.

……………

Kat dashed towards the spot where Jhese and Shads had disappeared but was cut off by a pack of Hound Soldiers, David moved beside her, his Command Wolf bristling at the five 'Hound zoids. Several Command Wolves joined the 'Hounds as they stalked towards the two separated zoids, herding them backwards wit teeth, claws and lances. Kat scanned the battleground; most of the Z.B.C. Command Wolves were tied up or shot down and the Liger units including Commander Hunt's Blade Liger were doing battle with several Hound Soldiers and a Gogulas Giga Cannon.

Cyrus and the Pteras units had been forced back by the anti-air missiles but had managed to outrun or destroy them all, they flew with all speed towards the ruins to aid their comrades. Lieutenant Wright soared beside him; the Flight Lieutenant was an excellent aerial pilot and made Cyrus wish for his old Pteras zoid to fight the young officer on level terms to find the superior flier.

The ruins came into view and it soon became obvious that the battle was not going well, a massive zoid towered over all the others, picking them off with its powerful cannons, zoids were scattered across the grounds. Some were destroyed, others frozen; a small group of Liger units battled the Gogulas while a Command Wolf and a Lightning Siax battled a pack of Hound Soldiers and Command Wolves.

"_Kat?!_" Cyrus cried out, surprised to see her in the ruins of all places, he rocketed away from the Pteras zoids and headed towards his teammates. Cyrus gripped the controls of the Redler, his index fingers resting easily on the twin triggers that would unleash a rain of bullets on the gathered pack of canines that threatened his crew.

……………….

Jhese woke up to find his partner already on the move; they were in some kind of tunnel. As Jhese peered out the window he noticed the strange patterns, markings and murals that covered the walls, a slight limp in Shad's movements alerted Jhese to his partner's condition "Shads pull up so I can take a look at that for you" his partner ignored him and kept walking despite the injury "SHADS!!!" Jhese stated loudly, the zoid snarled back and Jhese fell silent, the tunnel ended and the pair found themselves in a large cavern, so huge that-

The stadium burst with light; blinding Jhese with its brilliance, the young man blinked until his sight returned and squinted into the arena.

A figure stood in the center of the grounds, so far away that Jhese was unable to tell what direction it was facing. Shads started forwards but Jhese hauled back on the controls "what do you think you're doing?" he hissed "this could be a trap of some kind" his zoid struggled against the controls and screamed in fury, Jhese let go of the controls "fine, faith. But if we get hurt it's your fault" Shads snorted a reply and moved forwards again, limping towards the figure.

The figure just stood and waited; so still that it could have been a stump, but despite its lack of movement the figure seemed to radiate life. Only when Shads was standing over the figure did it move, or didn't, a voice not spoken and not heard filled Jhese's head _Ah it is you, it took me a while to recognize you with your new shell, not in much better shape than last time you came here are you?_ Jhese questioned his partner and received an affirmative grunt.

_Something seems different with you though, not just your shell…ah I see, you're ready_ Shads grunted.

The being made its first actual movement; lifting a hand. Shads bowed low till his face was level with the being, the cockpit hissing as it slid forwards. Jhese saw the being up close and gasped; the creature was not human, it wore no armour and yet seemed covered in metal, Jhese sucked in his breath as he realized what the being was.

"You're a Zenobian"

_How can you still be ali-no, it's not your original partner…an ancestor perhaps?_ the Zenobian placed its hand against Jhese's head _Ah yes, I see. You are actually related to this zoid's first pilot…yes, now back to the matter at hand_ the Zenobian turned its attention back to Shads _It seems your potential has been limited my friend, not naturally either…ah, now I have it_ the Zenobian placed its hand against the zoids face _relax._

…………..

Commander Hunt growled as his Blade Liger skidded to a halt, its claws digging into the ground, the Liger roared as it braced for the blasts that struck the ground about it.

The Gogulas swung its Buster Cannons about for another shot at the blue Liger, but the zoid had disappeared with the dust. The Gogulas pilot searched about desperately, not finding the zoid.

Commander Hunt watched as the big zoid swept its head left and right hunting for the last of the Liger units, Hunt looked up at his boys; the Pteras zoids held firm to the lines that had hauled his Liger up to this height, after being hit by a rock from this height that Gogulas would sustain damage, the laser blades that extended from the Liger's side would cut through it like butter.

"_Let her fly boys!_"

The Liger plummeted like a stone and the Commander let it. As the zoid picked up speed the Commander opened the blades and began using them and the fins on the zoids tail to keep the zoid on target.

The zoid hit like a blue lightning bolt; carving through the bigger zoid in an instant. The severed leg fell away from the bigger zoid as the Liger plowed into the ground.

………………..

Kat jigged her controls and slammed the final Hound Soldier, knocking it down, staying in her perpetual motion she rocketed over to the Gogulas, looking up to see the plummeting Blade Liger she hauled back on the controls and pulled the cheetah type zoid up short of the massive zoid.

The Liger's blades were way too short to cut the zoid clean in two, but long enough to sever the Gogulas's leg, but the cost was severe.

The Liger was a crumpled heap; and somewhere in that mess was the Commander. Kat, Cyrus and David rushed over to begin digging the Officer out of the zoid when a cold voice pulled them up short.

"_Don't bother trying to save him; don't even bother moving for that matter. Move and I will kill everyone in the area_"

A Koning Wolf trotted out of one of the decrepit buildings, followed by a Zaber Fang and another Gogulas.


	35. Chapter 35

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

_Memories._

_Thousands of memories flooded the zoids consciousness, countless combat moves, seen experienced and performed flooded through Shad's mind to be stored and committed. Thousands of witnessed battles both witnessed and experienced, thousands of pilot tendencies, every thing the core had ever acknowledged found a place in Shads mind. _

_Finally the flood stopped and the zoids eyes lit up._

_Jhese?_

Jhese started, that voice was not the Zenobian's gentle brush. It was brash, loud and very familiar. "Shads?"

_Yes._ Jhese was stunned. All his communication with the zoid had been through the zoid's metallic noises and animalistic vocals. He had always perceived his partner as sentinant, but this was the first time he had actually held a conversation with it.

_It is a he. And we communicated fine before _words _were involved._

That was it. That had been the only thing missing in their little tirades _words!_

_Yes well I hate to interrupt but I do believe you have you have friends in need of a rescuer._

"But Shads is hurt"

_The damage has been repaired, you are most welcome, but please refrain from coming back down here, I have no desire to meet more humans._

……………….

Kat, Cyrus and David stood shoulder to shoulder as they faced Darius and two unknown pilots.

Kat charged with David in hot pursuit; the two aimed at the Zaber Fang while Cyrus attempted to pin the other two down with his zoid's guns.

The Gogulas simply covered the other two with its bulk and swept Kat and David aside with its tail, the cannons swung around to face Kat's Lightning Siax. Kat pushed her zoid into action and accelerated away moments before the shot hit the ground. The guns then swung towards David, tracking his movement, the guns roared but David flicked the Zabat boosters and shot away.

"_Give it up lug head; give us cover fire while we deal with them_" the Koning Wolf and Zaber Fang accelerated to meet the two Crew zoids while Cyrus took to the air in his Redler.

Cyrus ducked his zoid under the heavy rain of the Gogulas's chain gun and peppered it back with his own, much smaller, weapon. Another spray sent Cyrus spiraling to dodge. _Damn it _Cyrus cursed _I can't get a good hit in; my firepower doesn't have enough kick_.

The Koning Wolf raced towards David's Command Wolf; its artificial strike laser claws lighting up in preparation for the strike. David knew this trick and fired in the air above the zoid, moments before it leapt into the air, the shot blew the Koning Wolf off target but had no real effect. The Koning Wolf landed and started towards the Command Wolf once more. Kat was on the scene quicker than Darius had anticipated, even believed possible. The Zaber Fang lay on the ground; its left side completely ruined.

"_RANDOM CLAW!!!_" Darius gaped as the five Lightning Siax zoids hit his 'Wolf. The zoid hit the ground and rolled to its feet; a system check revealed five slashes down the side of his zoid, thankfully shallow, but five slashes had connected, the five zoids were solid.

Darius jinked his controls and scurried away from the 'Siax, keeping the head facing towards the speedy zoid, when he deemed enough distance the Koning Wolf opened fire with its twin shock cannons.

Kat dodged the blasts by scooting sideways and zigzagging towards the 'Wolf "_CRAZY LASER!!!_" a wall of laser beams lanced the Koning Wolf, but the strange armour on the zoid shattered the rays.

"_Hah! Your lasers can be as random as you want Kathleen, I'm immune!_" the Koning Wolf charged at the Lightning Siax, but once again Kat thwarted him with her zoids acceleration. She hit the brakes and spun one hundred and eighty degrees to face the 'Wolf.

The thick smoke blanketed her zoid; obscuring her vision.

"_NOW, FIRE!!!_" yelled Darius.

Kat felt the impacts in her zoid's side as the Buster Cannons punched through the smoke to knock her zoid to the ground.

Cyrus dived at the Gogulas as it shot Kat; hoping to hit it with his blades while it was busy, however the massive zoid simply swept its chain gun into the Redler's path and fired. Cyrus's zoid stuck the ground and lay still.

David rushed to aid his teammates, but Darius had anticipated him. The strike laser claw hit the Command Wolf in the shoulder; severing the limb as cleanly as Commander Hunt had amputated the first Gogulas.

Darius stood over the fallen team and crowed; this time he had done it. He had taken down a Z.B.C. force and their hired morons. The Koning Wolf turned to leave at the same moment one of the ruined buildings exploded.

Both zoids turned towards the dust and falling debris, instinct told Darius to duck and it paid off as an electric blue flash streaked over his zoid's head, kicking off the ground and hitting the Gogulas directly in the chest.

Jhese couldn't believe the power that Shads was generating as thousands of volts tore through the Gogulas Giga.

The nimble Gogu Dragon leapt away as the behemoth toppled to the ground. The 'Dragon then turned to face the Koning Wolf, its glowing eyes locking onto the heavily modified zoid.

Darius backed the Koning Wolf away from the Gogu Dragon, he knew that the 'Dragon's strengths lay in close combat, all he had to do was stay away and keep firing on it.

Sooner or later the zoid would fall to the tactic.

The console beeped and Jhese looked down. "What is it Shads?" the youth queried _My new weapon_ responded his partner.

The Koning Wolf moved; running to the left and firing with the twin shock cannons as it circled the 'Dragon.

_Let's surprise that punk. _Shads moved off to the right, forcing the Koning Wolf to turn away to keep the distance, the 'Wolf was a fast zoid and moved back and to its right; trying to wrong foot the electric blue zoid, but Shads moved like the 'Wolf's shadow, tracking the zoid at every turn and matching its retreats with such speed that Darius was unable to even face the zoid to use the chest mounted cannons.

Darius realized what an error he had made in trying to emulate Bit Cloud in order to defeat him.

Bit Cloud never backed down.

Bit Cloud's cannons always faced forwards.

"_Use the cannon!_" Darius screamed into his comm. System.

Jhese and Shads pulled up short, letting the Koning Wolf retreat, as the tower collapsed; its secret glinting in the sun.


	36. Chapter 36

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

As the building crumbled to the ground the dust rose and hung in the air, suspended by a strong magnetic power.

The Gogu Dragon planted its feet and stiffened its body; Genosaur style. _Jhese, it's time._ Static electricity raced across the zoid as it raced to build a charge to counter the cannon.

Shads reared up on his hind legs, thrusting both front paws forwards. The charge raced to the metal talons where it was met by Shads' own electro talon electricity, the two energies met and accelerated; arcing towards the cannon at the same moment the charged particle cannon fired.

……………..

Kat stirred in her zoid, cracking open her eyes as the brilliant light washed over her canopy, her head ached; it ached even more when she thought about the fate of her 'Siax.

She pressed her face against the glass and peered out. The bright lights made it difficult to see but she finally made out Jhese's zoid Shads holding back the blast with his own energy wave, valiant, but still losing.

A shadow fell over Kat's zoid and once again her eyes were forced to adjust to see through the glass.

A white zoid stood behind Jhese, so familiar that Kat gasped.

………………

Jhese screamed as the blast pushed back Shads' electric attack "We gotta push harder Shads! We won't be the only ones who get blown up! Let me help!"

_No! it is too dangerous!_

Images of his team flashed through the young boys head; Cyrus, tall and goofy, and his Redler that Jhese had rebuilt with a Raynos power plant. David and his Command Wolf, the pair was as close as Jhese and Shads, words or no words. Jhese also thought of Kat and her Lightning Siax, who had only just returned to Jhese's life; only to be torn away now. Finally Jhese thought of Commander Hunt and all the soldiers whose zoids lay strewn about the ruins.

He couldn't let them all die. "Shad's I have to help!"

_... I won't do it…_

"Shads!?"

_No._

"**SHADS!!!**"

Jhese felt as though he had run a marathon and slumped weakly against the controls.

The two blasts now held even, but Shads energies were still flagging. They couldn't hold out much longer.

A second blast of energy collided with the cannon's blast, pushing it back with such awesome power that Jhese could feel it through Shads' frame, the vibrations reverberating through the Gogu Dragon.

Jhese had to use all his energy to turn and attempt a look at his savior, but the bright lights were blinding and his eyes couldn't penetrate.

The cannon kept up its barrage but under the combined might of a flagging Shads and the powerful newcomer its energies were pushed back and the weapon obliterated in a flash that knocked Jhese out.

……………..

"Jhese?" a voice from nearby woke Jhese.

"Jhese?" the voice repeated.

Jhese's eyes flickered and everyone crowded closer to check on the young pilot.

"Okay guys, step back. You're taking his oxygen" an unfamiliar voice ordered, Jhese felt the presences move away. He tried to open his eyes again but the light sent needles through his skull and he squeezed them shut.

"He's coming to" Kat's voice was full of concern and Jhese made another attempt at opening his eyes. He looked into a vaguely familiar face that he couldn't place, but that probably meant a Doctor.

His confusion must have shown and the person held up his hand before asking "how many fingers am I holding up?"

"He wouldn't know that anyh-OW!" Cyrus's humor was accentuated by the sound of a rather solid thump and followed by Kat's semi outraged voice "Shut up Cyrus. He might be hurt"

Jhese smiled weakly and tried to sit up, his head swam but didn't hurt and he looked about; Cyrus stood back rubbing his shoulder, beside him Kat beamed, David stood on the other side, next to his mother, both were still looking concerned. Many of the Z.B.C. soldiers lay about the ruins receiving attention from the gathered townspeople who bustled about rendering assistance and first aid.

Jhese looked back at the person who had been looking after him thinking he was one of the townspeople, but his gaze landed instead on the white zoid, his gaze snapped back to the pilot as it clicked.

The pilot was of medium height and looked about eighteen or younger, he had dark hair and eyes, a round face and a gangly body that suggested a recent growth spurt. His clothes were road stained but well looked after and he bore the Z.B.C. logo just like Commander Hunt.

"Vega…Obscura?"

"Heh; didn't take you long did it?" Vega grinned and looked younger still.

"Since when did you work for the Z.B.C.? Aren't you Back-draft?" a slight shadow crossed the pilot's face as he frowned.

"Well, it's a long story…" he looked at Jhese and at the expression the boy wore "I guess I could give you some details…"

**Oh, right...**

**Soon I'll be sending Jhese into class S...what am I saying? FINALLY I'll be puting the Crew into class S. And it would be great if you guys would send in suggestions for a title, just remember it will be a NEW STORY and the title is gonna help you guys find it. I still have several chapters left of this story so I'll keep y'all posted on what's going on and the final title. Be creative or be a smartass, your choice. I'll take 'em all into account. **


	37. Chapter 37

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

As he was hurled into the cell Vega was dimly aware of the barred door that slammed shut behind him.

The small boy picked himself up off the floor and dusted himself off before turning to calmly glare at his captors, just like Sarah had taught him, the two Z.B.C. soldiers were well trained and offered no emotion in response.

Simply turned and left.

Vega watched them go before sighing and leaning against the door, he studied the cell.

Three walls of grey cement, one broken by a window fitted with grey bars. The bed was small and flat, covered by a grey blanket and topped by a pillow, also grey.

The guards never provided Vega with any kind of marking tool and kept careful watch over who and what entered his cell, eating utensils were checked off as he gave them back after meals. This made keeping track of time a difficult exercise, maybe the prison made it that way, maybe not.

By Vega's reasoning it must have been around a month before somebody actually 'spoke' to him beyond the simple 'here' and 'now' that he had received from the soldiers until now.

Vega had been dozing on the bed after completing his daily exercises, customized to be done in a cell, when a tap on the bars woke him up.

A tall man stood behind the bars, tall and built like a hand to hand fighter rather than a zoid warrior "Vega Obscura?"

Vega said nothing and continued to stare at the man, just as Sarah had taught him. Damn he missed them; Sarah and the 'Fury.

"The strong silent type eh? That's fine; I have enough to say for both of us" the big man grinned "I'm Major Hu-"

"Where are 'Fury and Sarah?" Vega interrupted.

The Major laughed, a deep mellow laugh and Vega hated him for it "they're both fine kiddo, safe and secure. It's up to you if you see them or not"

Vega glanced around his cell "How do you figure that?"

"This is a facility for rogue pilots and organization honchos; you don't need to be here. I come to offer an alternative" the Major held out his hands, palms up.

"Alternative…?" Vega repeated, faltering in his bluster.

"You know…something along the lines of you help us, we help you"

"I could see 'Fury and Sarah?" Vega's hopes rose.

"Play your cards right and you could be piloting the Berserk Fury"

Vega held his breath and waited.

"Bit Cloud tells us that you didn't seem to be a vicious heartless thug that people think you are, that you didn't seem to realize the risks involved in blowing up zoids. Risks to the lives of people"

"Zoids have ejection seats" Vega stated "the Count told me that everyone uses their ejection seats when they lose"

"Some people have a harder time accepting defeat than others" the Major stated, a faraway look in his eyes "look kid, you can't simply destroy every zoid you defeat. It isn't right"

"Right…? But in the wild zoi-"

"Zoids eat each other don't they, Vega did the Berserk Fury eat any of its opponents, after it defeated them?"

Vega sat silent.

The Major got up and left without a word, Vega was too stunned to say a word and simply watched him leave.

The Major didn't return for a good month, and didn't initiate the conversation when he finally sat down beside Vega's cell.

"Eat would be the wrong term" Vega said.

"Hmm?" replied the Major.

"'Fury never 'ate' the destroyed zoids, he read them, gathered their memories"

"You know, Bit Cloud's Liger Zero never destroyed other zoids to gather information, and he stomped your ass"

"Yeah, I guess. But Bit had his zoid for over a year, I only had 'Fury for two months. 'Fury grew faster"

"Maybe you lost because you took the cheap, nasty way?"

Vega fell silent for a moment.

"Well I'm off" stated the Major.

"Wait" Vega pleaded "Maybe you're right about the cheap, nasty way, maybe I lost to Bit because of that. But how will I ever know if you leave me in this cell for months on end? I need to face Bit to see if you're right"

The Major smiled "and now we get back to how you can help us"

"How?" Vega asked curious despite Sarah's training.

"You are a phenomenal pilot and more than capable of handling many foes by yourself, but what are you like at looking after yourself out in the wilds?"

"I don't follow"

"We're going camping"

………………….

Camping sucked.

But anything was better than the cell and Vega knew it. He sat on a log wondering how the Major seemed so at ease in the wilderness, bugs, cold and rain didn't seem to bother the happy Major, his Shield Liger sat off a short distance, but that didn't matter, the Berserk Fury was still being held somewhere under heavy security.

Stealing the Shield Liger was pointless.

The Major threw Vega a stick which Vega caught and studied curiously "Ever roasted marshmallows before?" Vega shook his head silently "Aw, you don't know what you've been missing" the Major stuck a white gob on his stick and stuck it in the flames, pulling out a black gob; he flicked the bag to Vega before throwing the burnt gob in his mouth.

Vega stuck one of the white gobs on the stick and stuck it into the flames, it browned quickly and Vega pulled it out, he eyed it warily before pulling it off the stick, white goop dripped a bit from the inside but Vega closed his eyes and stuck it in his mouth.

The taste was overwhelming.

Vega stuck another marshmallow on his stick before tossing the bag back to the Major.

He stuck the stick back in the fire and the Major laughed "Good aren't they?" Vega looked up and grinned, then looked back down to see his marshmallow had caught alight.

Vega panicked and flicked the stick out of the fire, then flicked it again as he tried to blow out the flames, the flaming marshmallow flew off the stick.

The Major leapt to his feet, the flaming goop stuck to his shirt, he batted the flames several times before Vega reached him and tried to tackle him to the ground, it was a stupid idea, Vega bounced off the heavy Major, from his seat on the ground Vega burst out laughing as the Major grabbed a fist full of dirt to extinguish the flames.

The Major rolled up the remains of his shirt and tossed them in the fire "It's really not that funny" he stated "Tomorrow we begin survival training"

………………..

Vega staggered under the weight of his load, the fire wood that he had been sent to collect, a good assortment of logs, sticks and twigs. He had spent all day learning from the Major which plants were poisonous, what was edible, good for healing or any other use for a plant. The Major had tested him repeatedly on the knowledge he was acquiring and Vega wondered at the point of it all.

Finally Vega arrived back at the camp and dumped the wood on the ground in front of the Major.

"Okay, now I want you to think how you'd stack wood to light a fire"

Vega considered the wood and began to build a tent-like structure out of the bark, twigs, sticks and logs. The Major watched with interest while Vega tried to light the kindling in the middle, he looked over Vega's shoulder to see what was wrong and burst out laughing, the boy had outsmarted himself and the match couldn't reach the small bark and grass at the center.

The Major fell back and pounded the ground, his ribs beginning to hurt from the laughter.

Vega glared at his companion until the infectious laughter took him too.

…………………..

They stayed in the outdoors for the rest of the week, the Major teaching woodcraft and survival and Vega learning all he could.

Finally the Major gave his reason for the trip.

"Vega, how would you like to make up for your time with the Back-draft?"

Vega's eyes clouded as he considered what the Major was asking 'Redemption…this is about redemption"

"Do you want redemption, or do you just want to see the Berserk Fury again?"

Vega considered his words "I miss the 'Fury like a body part, more than anything, more than I care about redemption. The only reason I got involved with the Back-draft was to have some fun fights, they gave me the Berserk Fury. But when we did…well you know, we both ruined our reputations, I would like to redeem both our names, maybe we could take up zoids battles and face Bit and the iger Zero again?"

"And I can help you do that. Vega, how would you like to work for the Zoids Battle Commission, as a ranger?"

Vega considered the idea, found that he liked it and smiled.

**Thanks for continuing to read my ramblings.**

**Things are starting to pull together. On a side note I'd like to ask you, the readers and reviewers (aka, customers) to send in some ideas for the name of the second part of the story where the Crew gets into class S. I'll tell you all the name before this part wraps up. If no-one offers I'm gonna do it myself and I'm sure you can all top the custom king pt2...I think.**


	38. Chapter 38

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Vega grinned.

"So now I'm a Z.B.C. ranger."

Jhese sat up some more and waited for his head to stop spinning. Then he stood.

Vega grabbed the boy's arm as he swooned "Hey, don't push yourself!"

From a standing position Jhese could better see the carnage of the attack. The only zoids still intact were his partner Shads and Vega's Berserk Fury. The townspeople had arrived with the vanguard of Z.B.C. troops; the Gogulas and Gordos had simply missed out on the battle at the ruins due to their slow pace.

A stretcher rolled past with Commander Hunt bandaged and bound down. He twisted his head to look at Vega and Jhese "Two kiddos. Too bad you two won't be on the same team together…you'd be unstoppable"

"Does that mean?" Vega's smile was as bright as a globe.

"Yeah, I authorized you last night" the Commander grinned as the stretcher was trundled away "Good luck kiddo"

Vega grinned and looked at Jhese; looks like I've gotta find a team. The new rules say I need teammates" he held out his hand "Until we meet again"

Jhese reached up and shook it "Next time"

With that Vega walked to his zoid and jumped in.

Jhese stood and watched him until he was out of sight then flopped back down "You're all going to be working for me for the next month, our zoids are torched" Cyrus and David looked at each other.

"The Z.B.C. has given us the month, and offered to pay for our repairs" Cyrus stated "and Commander Hunt is letting us choose six trashed pilotless zoids, only the broken ones though, to do up and sell, or keep, as we see fit. Kat? Are you back on the team?"

Kat cocked an eyebrow "Still think I'm replaceable?"

Cyrus shifted his feet and drew a breath "I've learned my lesson"

"Then yeah, I'm back"

……………….

Jhese and his mother stood together out in the desert, the silence covered the words that each wanted to say, the argument was a moot one anyway, neither party was particularly happy with the others decision.

May Rivers looked at her son, taller than when he had first left her and slightly broader, but he still looked to her like the infant she had held in her arms sixteen years ago. She drew a deep breath.

"I don't want you doing these zoid battles Jhe-"

""Bu-"

"But I won't stand in your way…just promise me two things. One; you better be careful, and two; visit your Mum every now and again"

The young man flung himself into his mothers arms.

………………

Jhese stood back and looked at his work.

The Lightning Siax had suffered from the blast pretty badly; the frame had been completely twisted and locked in place by the intense heat, so the core had been transplanted into another Lightning Siax. That meant that all the 'Siax's upgrades had to be transferred as well. Half of them Jhese had never seen, let alone remembered putting them on,

After much stuffing about and weight reduction the 'Siax had been completed.

Jhese looked at the other zoids; the Buster Eagle was untouched, having been repaired at Thomo's workshop while the team had been on the mission, Shads had been repaired completely by the Zenobian, Jhese was still unsure as to how the being had accomplished this with one touch, but the results were undeniable, the Redler was once again a wreck but Jhese and the Crew had managed to strip off its old armour and planned to replace it with new model Redler armour, David's Command Wolf had lost a leg in the battle, but replacing that had been a simple task.

The real surprise had been David's decision to keep one of the Hound Soldiers as his new combat zoid. The zoid had been modified to more of an infantry zoid, but still sported the melee lances and other upgrades that made the Hound Soldier superior to their Command Wolf predecessors.

The Crew was finally ready for a return to the battles.

……………..

David lay back with his book, a detective novel, and cursed as his hand twanged slightly _that Jhese is a slave driver when he feels like it_. He shook the offending hand and stuck his nose back in the novel.

The comm. Buzzed.

David groaned and got to his feet, the comm. continued buzzing as he hunted for the remote _we really need to clean this place_ he decided as he gave up on the remote and simply turned the system on at the console.

Official Chase Parker's face came into focus "_Greetings Crew te-um, just you again David? Do the others leave you to babysit the house or something?_" the Official grinned before continuing "_Well, at least I can rely on you to get a message through to Cyrus; Ok, welcome back to the Z.B.C. battle class B competition, your next scheduled match is against the Timber team, we are sending you their data now, plus the data for the co-ordinates and location of the arena…I look forward to seeing you lot move up the tables again_" with that the grizzled official leaned towards the screen and cut the connection at his end.

………………..


	39. Chapter 39

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Kat pulled the controls and the Lightning Siax RS bounded off the trailer. The zoid hit the ground with its front paws then its back, and then it rocketed off in a wide arc before returning to the trailer before the other zoids had even finished closing their canopies.

"_Kat, was that really necessary?_" Cyrus asked from the cockpit of the Buster Eagle.

"_Just stretching the legs_"

"_How does it feel?_" Jhese inquired, _he would ask that_ Kat thought, after all, he had changed the Random Special's bolt on upgrades into something that looked almost standard _Bloody champ must have been up for nights on end finishing this_.

"_No drag whatsoever, no squeaks, no noises_" Kat had to admit she had been leery of letting Jhese and Thomo near her zoid together, but the results spoke volumes "_So, what kind of zoids can we look forward to?_"

"_Did you fall asleep during the brief or something?_" Cyrus sounded somewhat miffed.

"_I um-_" Kat reddened behind the 'Siax's canopy, she had in fact been trying to get some knots out of her hair, she hadn't noticed how she'd been neglecting it, heck before now she hadn't cared, but for some reason she had begun wanting to clean up her image.

From the relative safety of layers of bullet proof glass and zoid armour David took the wise man's option and remained silent; ever since Cyrus's apology Kat had been taking care with her appearance, good thing she lived alone, because her shower bill had been impressive of late, _not that David had wanted to read the letter on her coffee table…_

Jhese supplied the answer "_The Timber team; a trio of Command Wolves, climber types, I don't know how but they have been climbing the ranks fairly quickly, they must have some good strategies because Climber Wolves are generally seen as a waste of money_"

"_Well, let's prove them right!_"

Jhese activated the Gogu Dragon and Shads roared and stretched.

_Partner_.

Jhese grinned _Hey Shads_. He was still unused to 'talking' to his partner but loved the extra form of communication, _ready to test that new armour?_

_Bah, armour based of shadow foxes, you're not Brad Hunter._

"Hey! You ungrateful lout, I made this armour myself!"

_Go ahead then, say the name out loud…I dare you._

Jhese hesitated and the zoid's smugness radiated about the cockpit.

"_Hey Jhese, new armour…what's it called?_" Jhese froze as David's voice asked the sinful question.

_Teeeelll theeeemmmm!!!_ Shads crowed

"_I…uh…_" the heads of the Lightning Siax and Hound Soldier swung towards the pair and Cyrus looked up from the console. All eyes were on the zoid that was completely loving the attention.

_Aw c'mon Jhese don't be a baby._

"_The Wraith Dragon_"

The crew was silent for a moment before David stated "cool"

_WHAT!?_ Shad's voice screamed_ Are you people tasteless??? He called me a wraith, a WRAITH DAMMIT!!!_

"Ha! Looks like they can't hear you!"

_Hmph!_

Jhese grinned at the thwarted zoid's final statement, "You refused to come up with a name yourself so quit whining"

The three zoids turned towards the battlefield as the Judge capsule whistled into the atmosphere, it crashed to the earth some ten miles away from the Crew team's location.

"_In the middle of the forest? The timber team must have requested it to give themselves an edge_" the Crew team started forwards as the Judge announced the battle "_Stay sharp guys_" with that Cyrus sat back to watch how things unfolded and to offer support where he could.

……………….

Jhese and Shads cruised along behind the Lightning Siax and Hound Soldier zoids as they searched the forest for the Timber team zoids "_Is it just me or is this forest getting denser?_" Jhese asked.

The Lightning Siax head swung side to side as Kat checked the area "_yeah, I might not be able to use the 'Siax's speed if we keep heading forwards like this_"

A shape raced past on the edge of Jhese's vision "Wha?"

_That was a Climber Wolf!!!_

David had spotted the zoid as well and lowered his Hound Soldier's melee lances, then he charged.

Trees, scrub , logs and bushes fell as the lances carved through them, David swung the zoid and charged back; clearing more of the forest as he ran.

A long hiss entered the new clearing, along with thick, chocking smoke.

"_Jhese!!!_" Jhese heard Kat and David moving about as they tried to find their way through the thick haze "You ready to go to work?" he asked his partner.

_You even need to ask?_

Jhese eased the controls forwards and reached over his head; pulling the lever down. A small probe popped up out of the zoid's cheek, at the same time a monitor popped up in the Wraith Dragons cockpit "Okay, sonar is good to go, let's add to the fun eh partner?"

_You sure know how to show a lady a good time_

"Say what?! You're _female_?"

_Aren't all machines female?_

"Well, I guess s-"

_I'm kidding Jhese._

**Yeah, it's about time too. The time has returned and so has my muse. Bloody Inuyasha, I swear he has Bit Cloud's voice, and while I'm probably twenty odd years behind on this concept, up until five days ago I had no inkling that one of my favorite Mangas had an english dub... So I'll be seeing y'all with another chapter soon yeah!**


	40. Chapter 40

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The wind blew from the north; cold and crisp, also firm enough to blow away the smoke that had filled the forest. Cyrus studied the forest; hoping to see some sign of the outcome of the battle.

An explosion told him that the fight was still on

………………….

"_Damn it!!!_" yelled Guyver as his 'Wolf was hit in the side, the leader of the Timber team had believed his strategies flawless; people always underestimated the abilities of the Climber Wolves, insisting that a Command Wolf Town or AC was the better buy.

Guyver had spent hours upon hours devising ways of winning using what abilities the Climber Wolves possessed, speed, durability and their ability to scale sheer cliffs, an unusual move for a 'Wolf type zoid. His strategies had never failed him yet, but here he was getting nailed to a tree by the twin lances of a Hound Soldier.

Kat grinned inside the cockpit of her Lightning Siax, Jhese was a genius. As soon as the smoke had flooded the clearing Jhese had launched magnesium flares through the area, revealing the Climber Wolf shapes to the Crew team and blinding the thermal technology that the Timber team were employing. The second Climber Wolf lay at the 'Siax's feet; its command systems frozen after three perfect body shots.

Jhese and Shads stood over the final Climber Wolf; the barrel of his zoid's mid-range rifle still smoking. The 'Wolf had tried to make a break for the denser forest but Shads had picked him off clean with the new gun _Not bad for a first shot eh?_

"Bet you couldn't do it again if you practiced"

_Bah! Practice is for lesser creations._

……………….

The Crew team sat around the table in Jhese's hanger, surrounded by their zoids and whole once more. Kat leaned right back in her chair staring backwards at her Lightning Siax; Cyrus looked at Kat out of the corner of his eye, probably weighing up the pros and cons of giving her the tiniest of pushes (if it had been Jhese or David they would already be on the floor); David had his nose buried in one of Jhese's old Zoid Custom magazines and Jhese hummed softly as he cleaned some tools that had some stubborn grease from one of his latest repair jobs. Silence reigned, but it was a comfortable silence.

All was well.

…………………..

Thomo gazed over his showroom. The polished floor was devoid of people, but the four zoids that stood there were perfection in its purest form. Three Gogu Dragons in standard trim and one sporting the MA or Mobile Artillery upgrade.

Thomo still couldn't figure out why Jhese had refused the upgrade; the zoid's abilities were slightly improved, even with the addition of a gun, but Jhese had been adamant that such a weapon would be in the way of his maneuvering.

This statement had bothered Thomo for days. So here he sat, between two computer monitors watching footage of the two greatest zoids; the Berserk Fury and Liger Zero, he had to find a way of making the Gogu Dragon so destructive in close combat situations that it could outperform the Liger and still be able to outgun the 'Fury.

He had another long night ahead.

……………………

The sites of recent zoids battles were sometimes a good place to find zoid components, but more often than that they were a good place to find interesting people.

One such person was Blake Yowie; a tall, built man who piloted a Zaber Fang known affectionately as Bumblebee. Jhese grinned as Kat slowly shook her head, "Bumblebee" was bright yellow and sported twin GT stripes that ran from the tip of the zoid's nose back to its black stubby tail, a black checker pattern ran down its cheeks and around each of its four legs. Yowie told anyone who would listen that it gave the zoid character.

Yowie grinned as the pair approached him "And what can I do for you young lovers today?"

Jhese felt the blood running to his face and realized he was blushing, a quick peek at Kat revealed an identical reddening "We're not a couple Mr. Yowie"

"Shame, damn shame" Blake Yowie picked up a component to hide his smirk "remember boy, I told you to call me 'Yowie' didn't I?"

"And I told you I would when you told me what a Yowie was"

"Funny story that, too bad I don't know it. Now, can I interest you in some components?"

"Data actually, for Thomo"

"And a second pilot to take it home; good, good."

Kat looked at the two in confusion "Excuse me!? Why do we need a secondary pilot?"

Yowie's triumphant grin spanned the entire width of his head "Ah, ignorance is bliss, believe me missy, once you know what Thomo is cooking, you, like me, will wish you didn't"

"If I know what that old fool is cooking, I might be able to dodge the fallout" Kat muttered.

Yowie howled with laughter "I like you girl! Boy, you better ask her out before I do!"

Jhese felt his face turn a brighter shade of crimson before the colour drained completely "What is that?" the zoid was probably small size maybe medium, considering that the basis was a smallish creature known as a porcupine this wasn't too surprising, the appearance of the zoid however was.

"They call it a Razorquill, fifty double sided blades that can be pumped full of energy all in a package that can attack in both long and short range combat, it even has a small E-shield that can hold its own against some serious attacks, one guy told me that his managed to ward of a Blade Liger attack!"

"Okay, Thomo said this was what you'd be asking" Jhese held out an envelope. Kat swatted his hand down.

"How does this count as data to you?" she waved a hand at the zoid "looks like more than just data to me"

"Well, no-one has actually gathered the data of abilities for this zoid and when I pointed that out to Thomo it became…well, it became something of a running joke. Sorry if it seemed deceptive"

Kat sighed "The things I put up with"

Yowie chuckled softly "Beware of bandits lovebirds" with that he took the envelope and replaced it with zoid-gear.

……………..

The Razorquill was…slow.

It could move fast, at the expense of the pilot's co-ordination. Whoever came up with the concept of a zoid curling into a ball and rolling was a total nutter.

In short Kat hated it.

Jhese tried to keep her looking on the bright side but his irrepressible partner was making it a nightmare. _C'mon partner lets just get the girl you want and ditch the useless zoid, this is taking far too long!_

"Quit whining Shads, we'll get to the base soon…oh and Kat's not _my girl_"

_Only because you're too gutless to ask her to be._

"It's complicated"

_No it's not. You are making it complicated._

"Forget you. Why am I taking love advise from a zoid?"

_Because I am the Looooove Dragon!_

"Shut up!"

_Aw you know you don't mean that. You love my advice._

"Zoids fool!" Jhese hissed.

Shads stopped sharply. _They aren't friendly._

Kat had stopped the Razorquill "_What is it Jhese?_"

"_Bandits_"

The four zoids appeared on the horizon as dots, but they moved fast. The dots became shaped till Kat's keen eyes made out the type of zoids "_Hellcats_"

"_Hellcats? But why would bandits have Hellcats and not have them cloaked, that's a basic feature for Hellcats isn't it?_ _Be careful, they must have other tricks_"

The Hellcats bounded towards the two zoids, covering the distance with a speed that could only mean _Boosters!!!_ Shads finished. The Hellcats were equipped with boosters instead of Optic Camouflage units.

Kat opened fire and for the umpteenth time Jhese wished that his partner was equipped with a distance weapon. The Hellcats took to the rocks; bounding about the cover as they closed the gap between them and their prey.

_Prey hell! I am no-ones prey!_ Shads flicked up his shield and charged forwards; taking the fight to the Hellcats, claws lighting up with anticipation. Jhese hauled back on the controls trying to hold the zoid back to where they could be useful to Kat, but the zoid charged regardless.

As they reached the Hellcats Shads singled out one and lunged, the Hellcat hit the brakes and disappeared in a cloud of smoke, discharged by the other Hellcats as they tore past "Punks" Jhese breathed and reached over his head; pulling down a small lever.

A small flap opened on Shads cheek as a smaller probe rose from its compartment. At the same time a monitor popped up on the console "Ha, welcome to the new world ladies" Jhese said as the sonar system revealed the Hellcat's location to him to him, he pulled the controls to the right and Shads pirouetted in a tight circle, his broad tail smacking the smaller zoid off its feet to land hard against a rock. Jhese kicked the thrusters and left the zoid frozen on the ground. He quickly caught the second Hellcat and overtook it in the haze, zeroing on the lead zoid.

Shads leaped on the zoid and pushed its head down as he leap-frogged the zoid. The Hellcat bit the sand as it tripped over, Shads grabbed the sand with his claws and slid to a broad-side stop, turning to watch another Hellcat trip over its fallen teammate. The sole remaining Hellcat burst out of the smoke and into Shad's waiting Electro Talon.

_You bad!_ Shads said to Jhese.

Jhese couldn't help but join the hokey line "_No, you bad_"

_Well, if I'm bad and you're bad…_

"_Then we bad! Hey Kat! Do we rock or…WHAT!!!?_"

The pair looked up at the Razorquill to see it being air-lifted by a squadron of Pteras zoids.


	41. Chapter 41

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Jhese was on the comm. in an instant calling out to Cyrus and David and anyone who would listen for help, as he called Shads rocketed along after the Pteras' under full boost, but for all it's speed the Gogu Dragon was no match for the pace of an airborne zoid and started to fall behind.

Jhese yelled until he was hoarse, but no answer came. Jhese was deflated and even Shads began to slow down "Hey, what the HELL are you doing!!!?"

_Sorry, my boosters have overcooked._

The Gogu Dragon slowed down to a run and the squadron of Pteras zoids vanished from sight.

Jhese slumped in his seat. _Kat._

………………….

The twin suns beat down hard on the pair as they stopped in a small town to look for help.

Jhese hauled himself out of the cockpit and fell to the ground, exhausted.

………………….

Jhese cracked open his eyes and was surprised to see a familiar face hovering over him. It still took him a while to summon the name.

"Fawkes…?"

"Yeah kiddo, I was starting to worry about you"

"Fawkes…Kat…?"

"Who?"

But it was too much and Jhese blacked out again.

…………………

The next time Jhese awoke he was surprised to see Cyrus and David hovering over him. He moved to sit up but David and Cyrus pinned him back to the bed.

"Whoa dude, settle. Heat stroke isn't something you just bounce back from you know"

"We gotta save Kat"

"We gotta save you first, brain-dead fool, Kat needs you. Not me or David, you"

"How?"

"The group who kidnapped Kat did it for the zoid, they sent a message to your zoid some time ago and it's been playing it ever since"

"Shads…?"

"Is in the Fawkes team's hanger"

Jhese moved again to sit up, this time no-one stopped him. He looked around the room and spotted Ember Fawkes; leaning against the door-frame, Karin Chang; sitting on the only chair in the room and a wiry individual that Jhese presumed must be Hamish Firewall.

"Oh, the Fawkes team has also offered some airborne assistance"

"Three flying zoids would be good"

"Four, David is flying the Redler"

Jhese rolled his feet off the bed and stood up, swooning at first but steadying quickly. He headed out the door "Which way is the hanger?"

Fawkes grabbed him as he staggered past "Hydration first, you need water" she led Jhese out to the kitchen and poured him a glass "Now sit down" Fawkes pushed Jhese down into the seat "look kid, those bandits that stole your zoid and teammate have challenged you to a duel, one on one. If you win you get Kat back, if you lose you still get the girl back, but they will take all the Crew team's zoids…including her Lightning Siax" Ember Fawkes looked Jhese right in the eye "They have put you in a position where you need to make a decision and make it count, they gave you an hour"

………………….

Jhese was unhappy with his decision, but he had no choice. He had asked Cyrus, David and even Shads, none had been happy with answering, but all had agreed that Kat would rather die than be parted with her beloved 'Siax.

The duel would be accepted.

Jhese waited in the cockpit of his beloved Gogu-Dragon, the thought of losing Shads tore him to pieces, but so did the thought of losing Kat. Jhese hated the feelings churning in his gut.

Notes of music suddenly filled the cockpit and Jhese snapped out of his brooding to listen

"Coz I am a man who will fight for your honor

I'll be the hero that you're dreaming of

Gonna live forever, knowing together

That we did it all for the glory of love"

"You don't make things any easier do you partner?"

_Easier? How can it be easier? This is the advice of the Looooooove Dragon!!! GO RESCUE YOUR GIRL DAMMIT!!_

"But Shads…you"

_I would rather not put up with a person who doesn't rescue his friends._

"Thanks Shads"

…………………….

The crater made the perfect arena, natural boundaries, very few obstacles and space to move, or at least enough space for the bandit waiting in the arena.

The Bandit had done his homework on the zoid, the Gogu Dragon. The zoid was a close-combat specialist that rarely displayed any kind of long-range ability. He knew the zoid could change armours, but there was no way that any ground unit could have made its way from the Crew team's town to the crater in less than three days.

The bandit had thought this out well.

…………………

Jhese braced himself as Shads crested the crater wall, but his gut still sank. The crater was huge and sparse. No cover was to be had and his opponent waited for him on the other side of the crater, a yellow Zaber Fang with black racing stripes.

Blake Yowie.

"_Yowie you cheat! How could you do this?_" Jhese yelled over the comm.

Yowie's face appeared on the monitor "_Well I did some research on your team and decided that no B ranked team deserved such expensive zoids y'know?_ _So really you could say I'm doing your zoids a favor_"

The yellow Zaber Fang fired its long-range cannon but didn't move.

Jhese pulled the controls to accelerate forwards but Shads stopped him, instead leaning slightly to the right. The whistling ripped at Jhese's ears, demanding that he leave the area, but Shads ignored all commands until the shot screamed past and continued on its path to explode against the crater wall.

_A game of chicken, how droll._

The comm. unit buzzed and Cyrus's face appeared "_Jhese, we've found their base and the zoid, but not Kat, you're gonna have to beat that knowledge out of him I'm afraid_".

As the second shot was launched Shads moved, charging towards the Zaber Fang. The second shot whistled past to explode mid-air where the Gogu-Dragon had been standing only moments before. Shads plowed on.

"How did you know he would do that?"

_First shot is to get you moving so he can judge your speed or get you cocky, second shot blows you to pieces, basic strategy really._

"I've never seen a move like that in my life"

_I've been around longer than you. _Shads veered off to the left, and another mid-air explosion rocked the ground. _Arrogant bandit, you think that was luck?_ _I'll give you luck._

Blake Yowie snarled at the closing zoid, gonna fix you this time, admittedly he was not dealing with a pilot who deserved to be in class B, this was a class A or class S pilot easily, but the next shot would catch Jhese no matter where he fled.

Yowie reached under the seat and grasped the lever, pulling it up to activate the new system. The twin lasers lifted higher than standard as the hydraulic system raised their mountings, a long cylinder mounted to the side of the zoid moved to the top where it stopped just short of touching the twin laser's mountings and was connected automatically to the single large petrol tank hidden between Bumblebee's hind legs, the twin lasers then moved to point just in front of the cylinder. Yowie then caught Jhese on the comm.

"_You got a burns kit?_"

Having covered the crater to get within striking distance Jhese fired the boosters and leaped at the yellow Zaber Fang.

Flames engulfed the Gogu Dragon.

**That does it. After no responses whatsoever to the nameing of the second part you are now all stuck with The Custom King S. I still have a couple of chapters left to write so look out for reminders, other than that enjoy.**


	42. Chapter 42

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The Gogu Dragon burst through the flames; its shields humming loudly, it reached for the Zaber Fang with blazing claws…

A sudden impact knocked the Gogu Dragon to the ground, another impact pushed it back in front of the Zaber Fang. The yellow zoid opened its jaws to use its fearsome teeth but Jhese wanted none of that and hit the boosters; launching the electric blue zoid headfirst into its yellow assailant.

Bumblebee hit the ground hard and rolled slowly to its feet.

"_Jhese, we can't find Kat_"

Jhese spun the Gogu Dragon on its toes and struck something solid with its tail. The Hellcat hit the ground and flickered into view as its systems shut down. Jhese got on the comm. to Blake Yowie "_When I finish with your contingency plan I'm gonna deal with you_" with that he pulled the leaver over his head and watched as the monitor popped up to display the two remaining Hellcats.

Jhese pushed Shads into action and was on top of one of the Hellcats before the pilot could react. Powerful jaws opened and closed on the hapless zoid cutting its combat systems off from the body, the sonar revealed the second Hellcat circling to catch Shads' back, boosters flared and the Gogu Dragon rocketed out from under the smaller zoid's pounce. Jhese flicked the controls to the right; whipping the 'Dragon into a one hundred and eighty degree turn before charging at the startled zoid. The Electro Talons grabbed the Hellcat before shocking it out of commission.

Jhese scanned for Blake's zoid and spotted it scaling the crater walls "_Bah_, think you're getting away? Shads, lets do it!" boosters flared and the Gogu Dragon galloped to the crater's rim; a huge leap carried the zoid over the Zaber Fang and onto the ledge.

The Gogu Dragon's claws bit deep as they latched onto the Zaber Fang's forelegs "_It's over Yowie. Where is she?_ _You know what this zoid can do_"

"_Go ahead and zap my zoid punk, it won't hurt me. Your little girlfriend however...well. She might not fare so well. Zap my zoid and you zap her! Now be a good brat and haul me up would you, you don't want Miss Kathleen getting hurt in a fall that you caused do you?_"

Jhese was horrified and did as Yowie instructed; pulling the Zaber Fang up the rim.

"_Thanks kid_" Yowie sneered as his zoid stood on its own feet once more. He promptly lashed out at the Gogu Dragon with all of the Zaber Fang's power, sending both zoid and pilot flying over the rim and into the crater.

The bandit pilot then laughed long and hard as he headed back to his base. He'd send a truck to pick up the 'Dragon's remains and dispose of the punk.

**Sorry about the short chapter peoples, it's just the way it seems to work for suspense, feel free to tell me if it's annoying though, I'm always open to suggestions.**


	43. Chapter 43

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Cyrus spilled air from the Buster Eagles wings and plummeted through the clouds, the yellow Zaber Fang actually blended into the green and brown landscape, but it hadn't managed to move too far from the crater, Cyrus had heard over Jhese's comm. unit and knew that Kat was somewhere in the Zaber Fang, he pressed his thumb to the trigger twice then dropped to the ground before making another pass at the surprised zoid. Twice more he thumbed the trigger before flying away, his job done.

………………….

David grabbed the photos as they slid from the printer. David studied each one intently before comparing them to the data being run on his monitor "_Cyrus, she is most likely to be in one of the hind-legs, one or the other. That Yowie guy as good as told us she isn't in the cockpit when he told Jhese that if he zapped the Zaber Fang he would hurt Kat_"

……………………….

Shads clung to the wall of the crater, it wasn't a huge drop, but it would probably do some damage if it was an uncontrolled fall.

Jhese growled softly to himself; wondering how he could have overlooked the possibility that Yowie would not only use Kat as a hostage but as a shield. He shifted the controls and fired the boosters, giving Shads some extra help in climbing the walls.

The Gogu Dragon scaled the incline quickly and launched over the crest, landing in a defensive crouch, but the yellow Zaber Fang was nowhere to be seen. Jhese scanned the area, hoping to catch a glimpse of the bandit.

Cyrus's Buster Eagle passed by the Gogu Dragon in a low swoop "_Jhese, the bandit is three miles north of you and heading for his base, the Fawkes team and David have engaged the bandits there. How can you fight that guy? Your zoid's attacks will hurt Kat_"

"_Don't worry, I've got a new toy, been working on it since Commander Hunt told me that Shads grappling attacks prevent me from using hit and run tactics_" Jhese pulled the controls to face his zoid north and took off as quickly as the Gogu Dragon could run.

_So…the sonar system isn't my only new toy I'm guessing?_

"Oh I know you're gonna love this"

_Hmph._

The Gogu Dragon quickly came within sight of the slower Zaber Fang and Jhese activated the boosters, the pair was on top of the bandit before he noticed their approach.

"Now, laser blade…ACTIVATE!!!!" The laser snapped out of its sheath with a hiss and carved through one the Zaber Fang's front legs as the Gogu Dragon spun past.

The Zaber Fang hit the ground and skidded to a halt.

"Pretty cool isn't it Shads?"

_WHAT?! Are you kidding me? Who puts a blade in a dragon's tail? Do I have to spin past all my enemies from now on? Or maybe you want me to turn into a Guysack, is that it? What were you THINKING?!_

"Whine, whine, whine. Fine, let's see what you come up with next time. For now let's rescue Kat hmm?"

The Zaber Fang crawled back to its three remaining feet and Blake's voice came over the comm. "_Damn you! Don't you care about your girlfriend???_" the Zaber Fang fired with its lasers, but Shads simply ducked under the beams as he barreled towards the bigger zoid, a timed jump took him over the Zaber Fang's lunge and a quick stomp bought the Gogu Dragon down on the zoid's neck.

With only one front leg the Zaber Fang was pinned "_Alright Shad's, open that cockpit we need to talk with Mr. Yowie_"

The Gogu Dragon grabbed the top of the Zaber Fang's head, its powerful claws sinking into the plate armour, and pulled. The moment the canopy lifted a small figure darted out and leapt down from the zoid's head, Jhese spotted the figure and pulled on the controls yelling "Get him!!!" but the Gogu Dragon remained still "Shads wha-?"

_One…two… three!!!_ The electric blue zoid pounced after Blake Yowie and slammed the canopy down on the ground; trapping the bandit beneath its strong metal frame.

Blake Yowie gasped as the metal trap that had once been his beloved zoid's forehead fell over him. Then he was in darkness, but not complete darkness, light shone through a hole just large enough for him to crawl through, Yowie threw himself at the hole and began to slither through, he had just got his head and shoulders through when the sound of protesting metal made him pause. Pressure built up on Yowie's shoulders and then stopped, it didn't take the bandit long to realize he was trapped.

_Still want to compare your ideas with mine little boy?_

"_Yeah, yeah. I was talking about zoid components but nice move, I guess_"

_Pfft. Typical human can't appreciate true brilliance._

Jhese slid down the Gogu Dragons foreleg and squatted in front of the pinned bandit "Hey Yowie. You might not have noticed, but one of my friends is kind of trapped IN YOUR ZOID, and I'd really like to rescue her, so if you don't mind telling us where exactly, so we don't have to tear your whole zoid apart looking for her, it would be beneficial to both parties you know"

"Get bent runt!" Yowie snarled.

"Bent eh, you mean like metal…_SHADS!!!_"

The metal protested once more as the electric blue zoid pressed down on it. The bandit panicked and yelled "She's in the armour of the left hind leg! Look I'm sorry okay, but I'm desperate not evil!"

Jhese smiled "Don't worry, I'm not evil either; I'm actually a nice guy. I just want my friend back" with that Jhese climbed up into Shads cockpit and the two moved back over to the Zaber Fang, Shads gently gripped the armour covering the 'Zaber's left hind leg and pulled it off revealing the bare zoid frame "she's not there" Jhese whispered.

_IN the armour meathead. _Shads replied.

"Oh right" Jhese grinned ruefully and opened the cockpit to search the armour; he quickly located the trap door and opened it.

Kat looked up and yelled through the gag. Jhese untied her and removed the gag. Kat wrapped him up in a tight hug "Jhese! You saved me! What happened to that jerk Yowie?" Jhese pulled an arm free and pointed at the yellow canopy "Right" she jumped down off the Gogu Dragon's forearm and took off for the canopy.

By the time Jhese caught up to her Yowie's face had already begun to bruise. The bandit looked up at him through a partially swollen eye; the other one probably wouldn't open for a while, and snarled. Jhese grinned "Oh, sorry. I am a nice guy, really, but Kat values her freedom you know? Gagging her probably didn't help matters either"

David and Cyrus landed nearby, followed by the Fawkes team. But they were all ignored by the pair.

………………

Cyrus chuckled as he re-told the story to Thomo "Poor guy, I've never seen someone in bliss and agony at the same time"

"Must have been some kiss" Thomo stated smiling.

"Well, I imagine he was trying to decide what to focus on, her lips, or his ribs" Cyrus and Thomo shared a hearty laugh.

"And where is the happy couple now?" Thomo asked.

"I don't really know, but I'm happy for 'em"

**Yeah, I've been pussyfooting around how to approach this subject for some time...maybe too long, so now that we've got that out of the way the story can continue as it was meant to, skipping from bad jokes to battles and back again!!! Just a reminder, when they move up to class S there will be a new story; The Custom King S. **

**Keep an eye out for it.**

**Thanks**


	44. Chapter 44

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

"And the stadium erupts as the Gnarly team's Gogulas Giga crashes to the ground…and YES! The judge rules a system freeze, victory to the CREW TEAM!!!"

……………………

Kat groaned "I hate stadium battles"

Jhese squeezed her in a quick hug "You did great though"

"It's not the battle Jhese, it's those damn cheerleader commentators they hire. 'Oh look at me, I'm so perky, I just wanna SQUEEEL every time something goes bang'…uh"

Cyrus chuckled "Aw c'mon Kat aren't you being a little hard on them?"

"This from the guy who was falling over himself when one of the cheer-girls said his zoid was 'adorable'"

"The lady had a point"

Kat flicked her hair and grinned "Too bad the rules forbade you from showing off to her, 'no flying type zoids'"

David swaggered over to the group 'It wouldn't have mattered if he could. I would still be the only one with individual points anyway"

"You really shouldn't rub that in" Jhese said "That Gator was mine; you had no right to shoot it out from under me"

"Forget threatening him Jhese" Kat purred "there is only one thing a thug like this can understand…STACKS ON!!!" Kat crashed into David's chest in a jarring spear tackle and the two hit the floor. Jhese and Cyrus were only seconds behind.

"Well, well. This is an interesting training method…it seems slightly…immature though" the Crew team looked up at the source of the voice. Colby had grown since the last time they had seen him; his brown hair was darker, nearly black, he wore a brown leather jacket with one sleeve cut off, a white shirt and faded blue denim pants.

Cyrus untangled himself from the others and stood to face Colby "You ought to try it, along with winning once in a while, might be a novel experience"

"Oh ha, ha. If memory serves you have been using one of MY zoids for the past few months, I might ask for some fees on that"

"Oh yeah…gonna take your case to the authorities are you?"

"Hmph, I'll see you in the Battle Royal; we'll see who laughs last punk" with that Colby spun on his heal and walked away.

……………….

"The Battle Royal is a limited rules competition. Put simply teams will be scattered around the island and the last team standing will be the winners, the whole thing is filmed on Raynos cameras, so the only real rules are no Raynos zoids allowed and no shooting the camera zoids" David looked around his teammates "any questions?"

Jhese raised his hand like a school-kid "What about Cyrus's Redler? It has a Raynos power source, and how many zoid units is each team allowed to enter?"

David grinned "Well, I've asked the Z.B.C. about the Redler, they're considering it, and each team is allowed four zoids, and just like the Royal Cup; any zoid that experiences a system freeze is out of the tournament"

The door burst open and Thomo stormed in "You forgot the most important point; CAS systems are allowed"

"True, CAS systems are allowed, but that means the changing bay is one place you will always be headed, one place that the enemy can be sure that will go to, sooner or later"

"Or a place where you know the enemy will come looking for you"

Jhese stood up and waited for Cyrus and Thomo to stop "I don't mind being bait, but I don't know if we can last the whole day with people knowing where we are"

Thomo held up both hands "I'd like you all to come with me"

………………

Thomo's showroom floor boasted four zoids; a Gogu Dragon in standard trim, one in the MA or Mobile Artillery, with its long range rifle, the third unit boasted the Ironmonger armour, similar to the Panzer units on the Liger Zero, big cumbersome artillery for plowing holes in things, the fourth armour was known as the Peacemaker CAS, tricky as anything to handle with its ankle mounted thrusters and gattling gun. The walls displayed copies of the armours that Jhese had designed and built; including the recent Wraith Dragon armour.

Jhese held dear memories for almost everything in the room, but he also knew there was a new reason for them being here, either an upgrade or a new armour, Jhese was pretty sure Thomo was still smarting from his refusal to use the MA upgrade, but also knew that the upgrade would have compromised his zoid's abilities in close range combat.

Thomo walked over to the keypad "Jhese would you place your Gogu Dragon on the CAS deck"

Jhese headed downstairs and outside to where his partner waited, for some reason Thomo never referred to Shads by name; always calling him Jhese's zoid, or 'your Gogu Dragon' he climbed up the zoid's leg and hopped into the cockpit.

_New armour? _Shads asked by way of greeting.

"Well, at least he's given up on that MA armour" Jhese replied.

_MA, sounds like a rating system _the zoid snorted.

"That better not be the only reason you refused it Shads"

_It just didn't feel right; I'd have to protect the gun in close quarters._

The pair entered the complex and headed over to the transformation deck. Once they were settled the magnetic clamps locked down on Shads' feet; holding the zoid in place for the transformation. The component and battle data began popping up on screen and Jhese began reading.

Up on the catwalk the rest of the Crew team watched the process and data on three huge monitors; two view screens and one with data popping up as the components were attached.

Thomo provided some commentary for them, wanted or not "The armour has been built with Jhese's style of fighting in mind, and since Jhese doesn't back away from too many opponents it is mostly forward facing, the lack of armour covering the back has saved us nearly twelve tones!

"That much lost weight makes the zoid so much more maneuverable that we didn't really need to add the boosters, but we did anyway. This new armour makes the 'Dragon a match in speed for a Zero Jaeger or even a Lightning Siax.

"We also got the lightest shield generator that we could; sadly this means that Jhese has to be charging AT his opponent to get any real benefit off the shields.

"Now for the coup de grace" something that looked like large metal wings or swords were mounted on short arms that were attached to the mount located between the shoulder blades, strangely they had metal rods running up what appeared to be the blunt side; making Kat think swords over wings.

Inside the cockpit Jhese twisted around to look at the enormous blades that Thomo had labeled Squall Blades; the readout had stated that they could be pointed forwards and used as lances or rifles; alternatively they could be held out to the zoid's sides and used Blade Liger style.

"What do you think partner?"

_I think Thomo may have hit the nail on the head this time._

"Yeah, me too" Jhese thumbed the comm. system "_Thomo, we love it_"

………………….

**Big sigh of relief. Back to something I'm actually good at; the chaos of Zoid battles. It's gonna be a mayhem filled couple of chapters as the Crew team faces off against a heap of newly invented teams, because I've only just realized that all their friends and rivals are still waiting for them in class A. Good thing I could justify Colby's team being dropped back a rank without their leader. Ah good old Colby, always makes a good punching bag.**

**Reviews always welcome.**


	45. Chapter 45

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The Lightning Siax shifted in a manner that reflected the pilot nervously drumming on the controls, the giant metal animal swayed slightly but sharply.

"_Settle down Kat, it's not like this is your first zoids battle_" Cyrus lay back in the Buster Eagle's cockpit trying to act cool, but the corner of his mouth quirked at random intervals, giving away his game.

Jhese by comparison wasn't even trying to conceal his nerves or excitement; the mechanical genius was having what appeared to be an animated conversation with his zoid. That worried Kat, he'd been doing it more frequently since she got back with the team and she was concerned he might be losing his grip on reality.

By far the coolest of the Crew team was David; he sat back, slouched in his seat, going over the other teams and their known data. His Hound Soldier had been equipped with a four barrel laser canon, a weapon that rotated its barrels to prevent overheating and allow rapid firing. David only wished the team could have afforded a real Vulcan Canon.

……………..

The judges arrived with a bang, serving only to start the match and identify system freezes Jhese wondered why there were so many of them, the nature of the little island they were on meant that there was very little by way of cover or hiding spots as it was.

"_Ready, FIGHT!!!_"

"_Wake up Jhese! This is no time for daydreaming!_" Cyrus took to the sky in his Buster Eagle "_Whoa! They really did place us only a stones throw apart, guys, the Tank team is only a mile north of us, and the Rover team is less than that south and-oh crap! Guys I've got trouble up here_"

Jhese looked harder and saw the two zoids closing in; a Zabat and a Pteras Bomber. "_Scramble guys; Cyrus has company!_" the three Crew team ground zoids took positions in a defensive triangle that allowed each of them to view the maximum of the battle field.

Cyrus banked hard and dropped under the Zabat, it was no good trying to separate the two; they worked seamlessly together, every time he caught the tail of one the other would drop in behind him, forcing him to abandon his shot. He would just have to wait until the others could assist him.

Two zoids charged at the teammates, an Iron Kong and a Rev Raptor. Kat summed up the situation and took off, the Rev Raptor lunged at her as she came within striking distance, but its jaws clamped around nothing but air as the mirage faded from sight. The Iron Kong pulled up short and swung its fist in a wide ark, Kat pulled back on the controls and the Lightning Siax leapt onto the 'Kong's fist and up its arm "_RANDOM CLAW!!!_" the attack hit the big zoid square in the face, and bounced.

The Lightning Siax dug its claws into the ground for purchase as it slid away from the bigger zoid "Wha-" Kat blinked; unable to figure out what had just happened.

Shiiiiiiiinnnnnngggg!!!

"_Damn it Kat. This is no time to wonder, move!_" Jhese's Storm Dragon stood over her Lightning Siax; the Rev Raptor skewered on its Squall Blades "_Kat, get going! I can't help until I get this lump off my blade_" Kat almost burst into laughter; Jhese had rescued her only to become temporarily incapacitated by his victim's zoid. Kat kicked the 'Siax forwards and charged the 'Kong again, this tome instead of leaping at it she raced past and fired "_CRAZY LASER!_" the shots hit and flared as the electrical barrier dissipated their power, movement caught her eye and she turned to see the Hound Soldier tear past, its twin melee lances leveled at the Iron Kong, the shields flared again and the canine zoid bounced off to the side, nothing accomplished.

The Rev Raptor slid off the blade as Jhese scraped it against a large tree _like wiping a turd off the bottom of your shoe _Shads commented.

"And what would you know about that?" Jhese inquired.

_It seems to be one of your favorite pastimes._

"Hmph"

The pair turned to face the Iron Kong just in time to see Kat accelerating to avoid the missiles that the zoid had launched her way. David launched his Hound Soldier at the massive zoid again, once more bouncing away as the shields flared.

"Shads, do you think you can get a shot off if our blades can penetrate the shields?"

_Yeah, but the barrel would have to be pointing directly at its shield generator if you want it to have any effect._

Jhese spun his partner around and hit the boosters.

……………………

Cyrus stole a glimpse of his teammates as he rolled between his two airborne opponents _Damn it! They're all doing their own thing; we need to work as a team!_ Two missiles scorched past his zoid and forced his two opponents to scatter. Cyrus used the break to locate the source of the missiles; a battle raged nearby between a Redler and two Pteras zoids, since neither party seemed to be interested in him Cyrus assumed that the missiles were lucky strays and a plan formed for the Crew team leader.

Banking hard Cyrus flew in a loose roll to drop in front of the Redler; he then accelerated and pulled back on the controls; his zoid arcing upwards in a steep climb, almost predictably the Redler followed, as did the Zabat and three Pteras zoids.

Cyrus stretched out his hand; reaching towards the computer. Tapping quickly Cyrus found the program he was looking for and tapped the enter key, and then he caught the controls and readied his attack.

………………

Jhese and Shads barreled across the ground under full boost; their target loomed up in front of them, the Iron Kong beat its metal chest as the lithe Hound Soldier and Lightning Siax circled it at high speed.

_Uh Jhese, we really can't be hitting David or Kat at this speed._

"_Trust me_"

The blades lit up as shield energy was fed through the metal. Jhese grimaced as the Iron Kong lashed out at David forcing him to leap high, Jhese shoved the controls forward and shot under the airborne 'Hound, Jhese then hauled back on the controls and Shads leaped at the 'Kong, the twin blades lanced towards the shield generator and stopped short; the shield mushrooming past the pulsating blades and holding them fast. The comm. unit buzzed and the Iron Kong pilot appeared on Jhese's monitor "_Nice try, but it seems your little Jimmy lizard came up short_" the great ape reached for the 'Dragon.

Shads however was far from done; _LIZARD?! I'll give you lizard meat-bag!_

The bullets rocketed out of the Squall Blades and ripped into the shield generator. The energy field dropped almost instantly as the generator sparked for the last time "_What the hell? The blades were really guns, gunblades?_"

Metal claws gripped the Iron Kong's extended arm; the pilot realized, too late, that for him the match was already over "_ELECTRO TALON!!!_" electrical sparks raced up the metal arm, leaping from surface to surface and frying everything in its path.

Jhese sighed as the Iron Kong slumped forwards; its systems frozen.

…………………….

Cyrus thumbed the missile trigger and laughed as his little presents dropped out the back of their holdings, freefalling to explode against the tailing zoids.

The Zabat pilot pulled hard to the left as she spotted the falling specks; a move that proved to be her savior. The Redler and Pteras zoids exploded as the faster zoids ran into the falling missiles, smoke filled the air and the Zabat pilot chuckled quietly, her zoid was made to fly on missions in the night, and navigate pitch black caves at breakneck speeds, she dropped the visor and picked her way through the falling debris as it was highlighted by her zoid's sonar system. She quickly burst into open air and pushed up the visor to see things with her own eyes; the scenery was something she could have lived without she decided as a shot from the Buster Canon blew her zoid's wing to splinters.

**Yes, gunblades, and yes I did nick them from FFVIII call it a tribute, that would be why I called them Squall Blades...well, that and my lack of any REAL imagination. Personally I blame RandomCat23, go check out her FFX fanfic Spending Eternity, its a really funny read.**


	46. Chapter 46

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Looking down from the Buster Eagle, Cyrus saw the Tank team moving towards his own teammates; a pile of broken zoids lay in their wake; a Hellrunner and three Red Horns, the Crystal Shards team.

No rest for the wicked, Cyrus sighed and got David on the comm. "_Just a heads up, you have two Dark Horns and two Dibison heading your way, you might wanna dig in or something_"

"_We have to face the Tank team?! That is some serious firepower to be facing right after our last battle, think you can soften them up a bit?_"

"_Soften them up? You'll be lucky if there is anything left after 'm done with them_" Cyrus's Buster Eagle dived on an almost vertical angle; streaking towards the four zoids as it unleashed four shots from its Buster Canons. Three shields flared, but one faltered; one of the Dibison lurched to the side as its shoulder and left front leg wore the shot, but Dibison were nothing if not tough and this one was made if firmer stuff than most, its thicker armour bearing the brunt of the attack.

"_Guys, you might want to prepare to face these guys, I'll be lucky to take one out before they-whoa!_" the Tank team responded to Cyrus's aerial assault by launching a barrage of Anti-Air artillery.

Cyrus punched the afterburners on the Buster Eagle and accelerated hard across the treetops, managing to dodge the flack and some of the missiles, but three followed his zoid like dogs on leads; Cyrus hunted about using his eyes and radar system but there was no other flying zoid to dump his trailers on. This time Cyrus was on his own.

……………..

Kat, Jhese and David readied themselves for the team known as the mobile artillery units; their zoids were known to be slow impenetrable fortresses, how much more proof did a person need than hearing that one had been struck by a Buster Canon and was still walking.

The four zoids lumbered over a nearby crest and into view of the Crew Team's ground units and stopped; standing shoulder to shoulder in what appeared to Jhese to be a kind of phalanx maneuver. The two Dark Horns standing at the sides, one Dibison creating the spearhead and the second standing directly behind it. The last Dibison began charging what appeared to be a plasma canon.

Jhese saw the gathering energy and summed the situation up "_SCATTER!_"

The three nimble zoids shot off in different directions, the Lightning Siax arced out to the left, the Hound Soldier right and the Storm Dragon raised its shields and charged straight ahead.

Bullets and energy beams speared towards the electric blue zoid and Jhese twisted the controls; hoping to duck away from the fearsome assault, but Shads overrode the command and flicked his own shields to life, the thin blue veil flared under the heavy hits and vanished, but the zoid was already past the explosions and amongst the bigger zoids; hacking away at the still charging Dibison before being forced off by one of the Dark Horns.

Shads gripped at the ground as he slid back and fired randomly with the Squall blades; missing as often as hitting, then the plasma canon swung in his direction. Shads and Jhese shared a moment as they both swore with feeling. Twin blurs hit the canon, sending the blast away from the Storm Dragon and glancing one of the Dark Horns instead; blowing away the zoid's shields and knocking it to the ground, but no more damage than being tackled by another Dark Horn.

Divide and conquer seemed the most logical option, but the four zoids packed down into another formation that made the task seemingly impossible. Bullets and laser beams were fired at anything that moved; making it suicide for Jhese, Kat or David to get close enough to fight back, the three took cover for a moment behind a lone monolith, the only cover within gunshot of the formation.

"_Okay, we need a plan and we need one fast_" Kat stated "_We don't even know what's going on with Cyrus and we're pinned down_"

David spoke up "_Well, actually only two of us need to be pinned down here, so we have two choices as I see it…_" David paused for a moment then yelled "_Move it, our cover is about to become slag!_" the three zoids accelerated away from the big rock moments before the plasma canon liquefied it "_Two choices guys; choice one, Kat and I stall the Tank team while Jhese re-arms, or choice two, Jhese and I stall the Tank team while Kat rounds up some 'volunteers' to provide extra targets for the Tank team, any votes?_"

Kat stated "_Choice one_"

At the same time as Jhese declared "_Choice two_"

"_Fine. No-one wants to leave the others with these guys, we all head to the re-arming bunker and leave these guys behind_"

With that the three warriors turned away from the Tank team and fled.

…………………

The Crew team didn't get far before trouble hit again. Three zoids blocked the way; an Iron Drill, a Red Horn and a Sabre Wolf.

Colby and the remains of the Barrage team looked like they had seen some serious shelling; their zoids carried burn marks and dents that must have come from some serious firepower, Jhese could sympathize with their plight and hesitated a moment before charging to attack the team.

That hesitation saved his zoid from the shot that struck the ground in front of his zoid. _TRAP!!! It's a trap Jhese!_ Shads flicked up the shields as the next shot was fired and deflected the shot with the last of its pitiful power.

Kat and David charged forward with Jhese; hoping to get too close to Colby and the rest of the Barrage team for the sniper to risk more shots. But Colby was prepared and attacked with his Sabre Wolf's blade; lunging at the two zoids to force them back.

Jhese was there in a moment, his zoid's twin Squall Blades catching the Sabre weapon dead in its path. Another bullet hit the dirt beside his zoid as the Storm Dragon grappled with the Sabre Wolf. Then things went pear-shaped as the Tank team arrived on the scene.

……………….

Cyrus was worried. He had finally lost the missiles and had returned to the place where he had last seen his teammates; only to find it deserted, he had flown towards the re-arming bunker hoping to chance into radio range and find his teammates that way.

He had finally found the Tank team; who led him to his team, and the Barrage team. A three way battle raged beneath him and Cyrus doubted the wisdom of using his zoid's canons to give his team an edge when he found another zoid struggling with the same problem.

………………..

Harvey Magera watched the battle from his Rev Shinobi, waiting for one of the enemy zoids to get far enough away from the action for him to risk a shot, but luck was not with him today as every time he found a target one of his teammates would manage to foul the shot so he couldn't make it. So undivided was his attention that he didn't see the bird of prey swooping towards his zoid.

**A wise person once told me "I'll think outside the box when someone proves that I'm thinking in it in the first place" right now I think that the box is blocking my inspiration somewhat; so I'm going outdoors to bludge.**

**Enjoy the chapter.**


	47. Chapter 47

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Cyrus chuckled in spite of himself; the Rev Shinobi had been one of the zoids fighting with his Buster Eagle when he first found it out in the desert, and he for some reason had found himself 'feeling' the zoids anger fueling the attacks of talons and a beak that seemed far more powerful than normal.

Cyrus chuckled again; maybe he was as mad as Jhese.

Jhese had found himself separated from the main fighting and squaring off against none other than Colby in his Sabre Wolf the two pilots had faced each other before but never come to a conclusive finish; clearly Colby desired that conclusion now.

_Jhese, the others._

"Sorry Shads but this needs doing"

_The hell it does, you're just looking to stoke your ego!_

"Shads"

_Alright, fine. We'll give the jerk his fun, but this finishes now._

"Yeah"

The Sabre Wolf charged at the Storm Dragon, the maroon zoid leveling its weapon like a jousting knight. Jhese did likewise until a moment before the point of impact. The Storm Dragon swung the Squall Blades back to a Blade Liger setting as it ducked under the Sabre Wolf's single weapon. Colby read the feint and reacted; leaping high to dodge the cunning move "_That was sneaky Jhese; I didn't think you would stoop to something like that_"

The reply was barbed "_You're just sour you didn't think of it_"

"_True, but it'll be forgotten shortly after I deal with you_" the Sabre Wolf turned back for another pass, as did the Storm Dragon. The Sabre Wolf swung its blade in a low arc at leg level and Jhese countered by dipping the blades in the Storm Dragon downwards. The two blades rang as they struck and the two pilots wheeled their zoids for another pass.

The Sabre Wolf flew sideways and crumpled to the dirt after something hit its flank; Jhese looked about and spotted the Buster Eagle taking to the air; its canons still smoking after blowing the Sabre Wolf away "_Hey! What gives? We could take him!_"

"_This is warfare, not a battle Jhese, now go help the others by changing armour_"

_Kill joy. _Shads muttered.

"You said it" Jhese replied before turning to the re-arming bunker. The two charged into the bunker and stopped, the blast-door slid down and magnetic locks caught the Storm Dragon's feet; holding them in place "CAS Storm Dragon eject" Jhese stated to the computer; robotic arms began removing the battered armour from his zoid's body. Jhese used the time to consider his options; the Storm armour was too battered to be used again in this competition, the Ironmonger and Gogu armours didn't seem appropriate to the situation, both being too specialized to certain situations.

The Ironmonger armour could cut swathes through hoards of enemies, but would annihilate his teammates too.

The gogu armour could take down a Gogulas zoid, but he needed to pick off multiple targets, and the Gogu armour couldn't do that quickly enough.

That left the Peacemaker or Wraith armours. As the last of the Storm armour was removed Jhese made his decision.

Smoke poured from under the blast-doors as they lifted, movement stopped as the heavy haze coated the battlefield, fear of hitting a teammate drawing a stop to all shelling and charging attacks.

Jhese charged through the blinding smoke at full tilt, his zoid lacked thrusters, but with its lack of heavy armour it still moved at a quick pace like its inspiration; the shadow fox. Jhese targeted the Dibison with the plasma canon first. The first shot hit the heavy zoid in the same place as Cyrus's Buster canon had, mangling the shoulder further, the second shot went astray and hit the bullish horns that the Dibison, a weapon that had, according to historical texts, been developed to punch through a Death Saurer.

"I told you that shot was a fluke" Jhese chuckled

_I've only missed one shot and it was using sonar as a targeting device, I think you owe me some respect'n for that, a good polish should suffice, no mechanical aids._

"The zoid is still standing Shads; next shot knocks it down or no deal"

The next shot hit the mounting for the plasma canon and the weapon crashed to the ground.

"Ha, nice shot Shads if you're getting a polish its going to be with an orbital buffer" The zoid wavered and crashed to the ground beside its weapon, surprising Jhese "what happened?"

_Oh, you didn't notice? The plasma canon crushed the shoulder on the other side as it fell. Looks like you're gonna have some sore arms by tomorrow afternoon._

The pair charged towards the other zoids, looking for David; Kat's zoid had a sonar system of its own but due to time restraints Jhese had been unable to wire one up to the Hound Soldier, besides that the zoids melee lances would only get him caught on any zoid he speared, better to let him stay still and use his own smoke dischargers to add to the haze. Jhese found his teammate and the two of them fled the smoke to a waiting Kat.

"_Ready?_" the Lightning Siax RS aimed its Twin Lasers at the smoke; Jhese and David did the same with their own zoid's weapons.

The three zoids opened fire on the haze; firing indiscriminately on the whole area and blanketing it in explosions.

…………………..

Cyrus hummed as the robotic arms loaded rounds of air-to-ground rocket pods onto his zoid, the extra weight didn't worry the pilot, he would be dropping the lot soon, pods included, as an after-thought Cyrus reloaded the AZ missile pods and recharged his zoid's ion reserves, the blast-doors opened and Cyrus took to the air.

Cyrus struggled a bit with the controls, the Buster Eagle was not meant to fly with such weights, but rose from the ground at a respectable pace, a quick glance down at the battlefield revealed that Kat, David and Jhese had managed to pin the Barrage and Tank teams down in what could no longer be called smoke so much as dust.

Cyrus swooped down towards the chaos, the extra weight adding momentum to his zoid quicker than he had estimated, but he catered for it and pulled up, dropping rockets as he passed over, a quick squirt in the engines and the zoid rocketed skywards where Cyrus turned for another dive.

When he ran out of ammunition Cyrus flew over and landed by his teammates to wait for the dust to clear and clean up any survivors.

"_Nice flying_" Jhese commented as the dust cleared "_expensive victory though_" the dust was blown away by the island's sea winds to reveal a lone Iron Drill still standing

"_Bragging rights go to the one who knocks out the metal monkey!_" Kat sang happily as she opened fire on the Barrage team zoid, the others followed suit and the 'Drill fell to the ground.

"_At least we knocked out the truly hard competition_" David stated.

"_You hope_" Cyrus replied.

**I still find it hard to believe that the Dibison horns could punch a hole in Death Saurer armour, but hey, I like to believe that I'm not geek enough to dwell on it, and by that logic alone my beliefs are condemned.**


	48. Chapter 48

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Jhese waited while his teammates re-armed their zoids, with no one to talk to and no real way he could help speed things up Jhese had moved a short distance from the others, figuring that he might be of some use playing lookout for the others. He soon got down to the all important role of bickering with his partner.

_You can start by vacuuming out the cockpit, and I want one of those little pine trees, you know, the ones that make me smell less like you._

"Hey, I only agreed to a polish, what makes you think I'm gonna give you a whole detailing job while I'm at it?"

_Did I not make it clear that smelling like you is a bad thing?_

"You don't even have scent receptors; you don't know what I smell like"

_You callin' me a liar Boy?_

"You're just doing this because Kat puts one in her Lightning Siax; you're jealous"

Three zoids came into view, cutting off Shads' reply. Jhese studied the zoids but couldn't figure out what they were; they were dinosaur types, similar to his own partner, maybe bigger, a definite large zoid, bipedal like the Gogu Dragon or Gun Sniper. They had broad heads and powerful looking jaws, closer in appearance to a Gogulas than a Gun Sniper or Dark Spiner, they moved on strong legs and were balanced by a powerful but stiff looking tail and sported twin AZ double barrel beam guns; one on each shoulder.

But the thing that caught Jhese's eyes were the front claws; they sported an electrical system almost identical to those on the Gogu Dragon.

The comm. buzzed and a stranger popped up on Jhese's screen "_Hello Jhese_"

"_Do I know you?_"

"_Most probably not, see we're the Kathleen Raystone Fan-club, and we decided that she would be better off without you_"

"_So here you are_"

"_You got it, once we deal with you and the other two jerks we will escort Kathleen to victory_"

Shads snorted indifferently _weirdoes._

Jhese cautioned his partner _they do pose a threat Shads; there are three of them and only one of you._

_Are you trying to say I'm not worth four of those cheap knock-offs?_

The three zoids charged towards the pair, opening fire with their shoulder mounted beam guns. Shads made tracks; accelerating away from the powerful beams and leaving clouds of thick smoke in his wake.

Jhese twisted the controls and the Wraith Dragon zigzagged before arcing off and doubling back to the three zoids. Jhese knew that the ocean breezes would dissipate the smoke quickly so he needed to work fast. One of the dinosaur zoids popped up on his sonar and Jhese plugged it with the mid-range rifle before the Wraith Dragon bit down on one of the powerful hind legs; rendering it useless. The zoid collapsed as the Wraith Dragon let go.

Flames erupted along the ground and the Wraith Dragon quick-stepped to avoid them "A flamethrower? Maybe I should get you one of those, you being a Dragon and all"

_Nah, too many weak spots. Like this. _Two shots raced into the flames, a bright flash momentarily made visibility possible as the fuel tank on the dinosaur zoid exploded, revealing the pair's location to the third and final zoid. The zoid lunged; reaching to grab the Wraith Dragon with what Jhese was now positive were Electro Talons. Jhese reacted by grabbing them with Shads' own claws.

Both pilots activated the charge at the same time; resulting in a stalemate "_You have already been battling, you will run out of energy first and I will become Miss Raystone's savior!_"

"_Who are you?_" Jhese demanded, frankly he'd had enough of this punk; he wanted answers.

"_I already told you, I AM Miss Raystone's number one fan, I am Gilbert!_"

Jhese twisted the controls experimentally; testing the strength in the zoid's arms. _What do you think partner?_ He thought at Shads.

_Strong, but not an unbreakable grip._

"_Ha! Do you see how futile it is? Now I will-huh?_" Gilbert blinked in surprise as his zoid fell sideways, four neat holes still smoked in his armour.

Kat's Lightning Siax stood still, its Twin Laser barrels still smoking "_Two Arosaurers by your lonesome, not bad Jhese. You weren't planning on hogging the personal points to yourself though were you?_"

"_Miss Raystone…_" Gilbert's face popped up on Kat's screen, a person in his late teens, black hair and dark green eyes set on an unusually pale face, a face filled with adoration.

"_Who the hell're you?_" Kat demanded. Nobody but the police referred to her as 'Miss Raystone'

"_The leader of your fan-club apparently_" Jhese noted wryly.

"_Fan-club?!_" Kat regained her composure after a moment "_Aw, that is so sweet, thank you_" her final shot shut down the Arosaurer's command system completely.

"_That seemed harsh_" Jhese commented quietly.

"_What? I told him it was sweet of him didn't I?_"

"_I...oh never mind_"

The two zoid pilots waited in their zoid's until the others arrived, then Jhese headed back to the bunker to re-arm with different armour.

…………………

Official Chase sat slumped in his chair as he watched the Battle Royal on his large monitor; Jhese's battle had been the first in nearly fifteen minutes. Now the official needed to think; ratings had soared in the first hour of carnage, the sheer size of the island had meant he was able to pack it with every team in class B and the prizes had drawn them all in, but as team numbers had dwindled, many of the teams had chosen the ambush tactic, a good strategic move, but one that had set the ratings plummeting. Now the official needed to find a way to convince the pilots to move around and find each other, instead of waiting around for a target. A wide grin split the official's face as the answer came to him.

…………………….

All the Crew team looked at their comm. units as they beeped. A black square showed up on the screens, followed by a compass that depicted north. _A map _Jhese concluded. Two portions were revealed on the map; both depicting clusters of red dots, one also showed the colors blue and green, while the other just showed green.

Official Chase's face popped up on the screen "_To all remaining teams, congratulations on making it this far in this event. We have given you all maps that show your location, and the location of one of your opposing teams, as you or your teammates cover ground more of the map will be revealed to you, eventually giving you complete knowledge of the island and your opposition's movements. Good luck_"

With that the Official was gone; leaving the map on the screens.

"_So what now fearless leader?_" Jhese quoted to Cyrus.

"_Jhese, you go with Kat and David. We'll meet up every five minutes; we should be able to reveal more ground with that strategy. Don't stick to any pattern or other teams will be able to predict you_" with that the Buster Eagle took to the air, leaving the four ground zoids to choose a direction.

Jhese started heading south towards the nearest water barrier and David turned his zoid to follow, Kat didn't budge "_Where are you going? The enemy is that way_" she turned her zoid to the east "_Look at their icons, if we don't make a bee line to them, we are just opening the map for them_" Jhese looked at his own screen and saw she was right, as the other team moved away from their location. Without a word he turned the Gogu Dragon back to the east and followed Kat.

Seeing the other two would be at her side, or back, Kat took off at a brisk run, funnily enough a brisk run for the Lightning Siax turned out to be flat out for the Hound Soldier. They covered the distance between them and the other team quickly.

………………

Cyrus scanned the skies for other airborne zoids, but found nothing. It surprised him to realize that _he_ was bored. That explained why the ZBC had engaged such a strange twist. Due to safety reasons zoid battles could only be watched as a televised event and therefore were dependant on ratings. Introducing the map had forced the pilot's to give up their sniper holes in exchange for information, eventually forcing even the coolest head to search for their opponents.

A quick check of the clock told him it was time to catch his teammates.

**Any one else get the feeling that Official Chase is an Age of Empires fan, or maybe a C&C geek? Damn its hard to avoid putting referrences to things that have no place in the world of zoids in this FanFiction, pop culture, animals that don't exist on the planet Zi even zoids that should be unknown to the people of New Century sometimes need to be edited out. It's a bloody nightmare.**

**And the funny part is when someone says they enjoy reading it it makes it all worthwhile.**

**Signed: the Attention Seeker.**


	49. Chapter 49

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

The enemy team had picked up their pace and Jhese couldn't blame them; although he knew where they were he had no clue as to who they were, or what zoids they would be piloting.

_Intelligent my foot_ his partner snorted.

"What are you on about?"

_If you'd care to look at the screen it shows you two things about our foes, one they haven't stopped for re-arming which means they haven't fought yet, or they have been roving and are heading back that way now, or finally; they are so weak that they don't care who we are, they don't want to face us. _

_We can also tell from their increase in pace that while not as fast as me or Kat's Lightning Siax, they are faster than Red Horns or Iron Kongs, most likely Zaber Fangs or Command Wolves._

Jhese was stunned, he had never heard his partner talk so much before, let alone considered him an intellectual type.

_My soul may be similar to yours, but my brain is a computer._

"Oh, right" the awkward moment was saved by Cyrus over the comm.

"_We have a visual boys and girls! Two Command Wolves and two Shield Ligers; they're heading for a cliff-face, this part of the island does seem more rugged than the other parts we've been on…_"

"_You should try it down here_" David noted dryly.

"_DAMN IT!!!_" Kat yelled. David' and Jhese's heads snapped as they followed the Lightning Siax's sudden stop. The two pilots wheeled their zoids back to their fallen teammate.

"_Are you both NUTS?!_" Kat yelled "_someone just shot me down at full tilt and you want to come back to give them more targets?_"

Jhese and David stopped short "_But-_" Jhese started, Kat was quick to cut him off "_The leg is busted, so my 'Siax can't run and fight, the best-_" Kat's comm. shut down as her command system was frozen by a second shot.

………………………..

Up on the hill a black Gun Sniper pilot laughed happily; after all it wasn't every day that a person got to shoot down a Lightning Siax, let alone one owned by the tools that had given him the sack. Too bad the Hound Soldier and Gogu Dragon had continued on out of sight, it was the right choice; but a bloody heartless one.

Derik 'Stalker' Stiller spun back to his zoid's cockpit. If he hurried he might be able to take another shot at the idiots from a new vantage point.

As he completed the shift from sniper to pilot mode Stalker noticed the shadow that stood over his zoid. As he stared down the canons of the Buster Eagle he realized that payback was at hand.

…………..

Cyrus growled as the black zoid hit the ground, it felt good to get some vengeance on Derik for shooting him down, but the cost had been Kat's Lightning Siax; their fastest zoid and Kat's own unpredictable style had been a big reason for their success of late and Cyrus was not sure how the team would cope without her.

………………

On the ground Jhese and David had caught up with the team of 'Wolves and Ligers and engaged them in combat. Jhese had started to regret not waiting for Cyrus as his zoid lay on its back wrestling with the jaws of a Shield Liger.

Jhese and David had almost caught the fleeing team when suddenly all four zoids had turned to fight with the pair. And with two zoids facing each of them Jhese and David had quickly found themselves in over their heads.

Earlier in the fight David had gotten a skillful shot in with his zoid's melee lances and impaled a Shield Liger, knocking its barrel and forcing a shot wide to wipe out a Command Wolf, now the poor guy was trying to fight off a second Command Wolf while his lance was still stuck in the Shield Liger.

Jhese ground his teeth while Shads struggled with the jaws of the Shield Liger. Not for the first time Jhese wished he had installed a ranged weapon on the Gogu Dragon, he pushed that thought from his mind; even if he had installed some kind of gun, he was on his back at a stalemate with the Shield Liger's defenses.

_Defenses!_ That was the answer Jhese needed; the Shield Liger's defenses were front heavy like the Storm Dragon, leaving its hind parts undefended. Jhese reefed on the controls, forcing the Liger pilot to focus on his zoid's jaws as he yelled "ELECTRO TALON!!!" the claws of the Gogu Dragon pulsed with light as energy flooded through them towards the teeth of the Shied Liger.

The Shield Liger pilot flipped open the mane to activate the shield; protecting his zoid from the attack. Jhese pulled the controls again and Shads kicked out with legs that could propel the Gogu Dragon along at over two hundred kilometers an hour, the Shield Liger's body lifted clear of the ground; giving Jhese room to operate his partner's secret weapon. The tail-blade that Shads had whined and complained about bit deep into the 'Liger's flanks and disabled both the right side legs. A second kick rolled the bigger zoid off; allowing Shads to get to his feet.

Jhese searched the area for David and found him a short distance away. Actually an impressive distance considering his zoid was locked in a rolling, snarling fight with the final Command Wolf and still dragging a Shield Liger on its lances.

_Hard to believe that is actually David scrapping with that zoid_ Shads observed _not a bad effort_.

"I notice a bit of…is that envy in that statement?"

_Well, as far as puppet masters go, that Hound Soldier got Geppetto, I got Stupiddo._

"Jerk"

The Gogu Dragon caught the Command Wolf by the neck and hurled it off the Hound Soldier, before the zoid had even landed Shads had boosted over to it and caught it in his claws once again.

_Smoke them puppies!_ Shads crowed, the elation of his victory ringing in Jhese's head

"I am so disabling your internet connection"

**Okay, I know I was just whining about the whole pop culture thing before, but those two were worth being called a hypocrite over. Don't ask me why, they just were. Hell, I never even managed to sit through all of Pinoccio. Anyway, the X-box beckons and I shalt not disobey my master's call, so I'm off to play some online Halo.**

**PS if anyone smokes a player that seems to run into walls far too often...the player is stupid, not drugged. **


	50. Chapter 50

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Cyrus flew low to the ground; hoping against hope that the four Zabat zoids hadn't noticed his Buster Eagle; they had been cruising around between him and his teammates for the last hour. Of course they knew he was there, they were stalling him; keeping him from reaching Jhese and David. Cyrus knew that if Kat had been with them the trio would have been fine, Kat was as good as anyone in the business, but David and Jhese made an awkward team at best. By himself Jhese was an exceptional pilot, but the grappling nature of his zoid; the need to grab an opponent to attack limited his mobility.

The Zabats dropped from the air towards Cyrus's zoid, snapping him out of his thoughts and into action.

Cyrus pulled the controls back and the Buster Eagle shot skywards. The move was risky as it brought him within the Zabat's sights, even if it was only briefly. Cyrus tugged the controls to the right and corkscrewed upwards. Beams whizzed past his zoid as the Zabats opened fire with their laser canons; not a single shot hit and all the Zabats took off after the bigger, slower zoid.

Cyrus knew the zoid well and knew that in a race that went strait up the raw power of the Buster Eagle would prevail; the Zabats dropped behind, their thrusters unable to climb with the speed of the 'Eagle. When he had the space he needed Cyrus stall turned the zoid and dropped past the floundering Zabats, the G-forces pressed Cyrus back in his seat and he felt the pressure on his chest increase.

The Zabats plummeted behind the pilot as the ground rushed up towards his zoid, its embrace open and eager. Cyrus pulled back on the controls, he felt the insane G-forces on his chest, pushing and squeezing; the pilot used every trick at his disposal; tilting his neck to reduce the blood flow and holding as much oxygen as he could.

Gravity released its hold on Cyrus as his zoid reached finished its turn and he looked back to the Zabat flock and smiled as he watched two of them sinking earthwards; the pilots had blacked out. Raynos zoids were on them in an instant; collecting them in their talons and winging them off to safety where they would be informed of their defeat.

The remaining two Zabats dropped back and simply started firing at anything and everything. _Rookie move_ Cyrus noted and headed for the sky again. The two remaining Zabat pilots actually employed a creative move; the two began corkscrewing around each other as they fired, keeping out of each others way and widening their hit range. Cyrus appreciated the inventiveness of the tactic but the fight was over, he was almost sad to drop the AZ missiles on the gutsy pair.

……………….

The Hound Soldier weaved its way through what seemed to be the only section of woodland on the island, the pilot looked over his shoulder at his pursuers; three Black Rhimos zoids barreled through the trees in a headlong charge after their quarry. David steered his zoid off to the side to avoid the electrical charges that the big zoids seemed capable of generating from their horns; he veered again and shuddered as an old oak that had been directly in line with his previous path exploded into splinters.

……………….

A cottage by the beach was something that most humans aspired to; a quaint, quiet getaway where the most important issues were whether surfing or fishing was the activity of the day.

Frankly Shads didn't get it. He could feel the salt entering his joints and servos; mixing with the lubricants and grinding away at moving parts, the beginnings of corrosion.

Jhese could feel his zoid's frustration as it hunkered down on the beach so he could watch the ocean; he had seen the Warshark take to the waves, he knew it had the ability to swim and that in the water it had the edge on his Gogu Dragon, but he couldn't for the life of him figure out how to make it pop up without going in after it, he couldn't use the Electro Talon; it would work, but it would kill everything in the area too.

David burst into the area followed by the three Black Rhimos zoids and Jhese cursed "_Damnit David, you were supposed to lead them away from me!_"

"_What? Is the fish too hard to catch? I guarantee my bait works better!_" the older pilot cut a hard turn; forcing Jhese and Shads to leap to safety as the three heavy zoids slid through the sand and into the water. David opened fire on them; his Hound Soldier shooting them with missiles, bullets and laser beams, one of the zoids began arming its own missiles and Jhese pushed the Gogu Dragon to cover his teammate.

He needn't have worried; two of the Black Rhimos pilots took the faster option and attacked with their volt canons.

The sea lit up as electricity raced over the wet zoids and through the water, circuits sizzled and even the Warshark rose to the surface where it sat smoking and frozen like the Black Rhimos.

…………..

Kat sat in the cafeteria poking at her iced juice but not really touching it; her focus lay on the big screen that took up a whole wall _four teams left_ reaching over another table she grabbed a console from another warrior.

"Oi!" snarled the pilot "who do y-" his sentence was cut short as Kat's fist slammed into his mouth he staggered back and looked at his teammates for support; only to find them pointing and laughing at him. Thinking quickly the warrior grinned and waved "well that sucks, but if you're ever looking for a date give me a yell yeah?"

Kat's lip quirked in a fast grin, _smooth_. Her eyes flicked back to the console and she brought up the data on her teammates remaining competition.

The Raptor team; the team consisted of three Rev Raptors and a Gun Sniper. The Gun Sniper caught Kat's eye _black!? _Only one person that Kat knew of had a custom black Gun Sniper-

"He's already out" Colby stated as he flopped down in the chair beside Kat's "Cyrus nailed him about twenty seconds after he got you" Colby sunk back in the chair and sighed.

"Guessing from the fact that you aren't staying ready to hare it, I'm guessing you have some reason for me not smashing your face?" Kat asked mildly.

Colby lifted an eyebrow and looked up at Kat "I guess you don't really have a violence quota to meet" he caught Kat's eye "fine, I'll spill. There's this thing called 'Grave Wars' long story short, eight zoids apiece, no restrictions on arsenals and huge prize money. You want in?"

"Not when the catch is putting your zoids on the line, now get lost" she watched the pilot walk away and focused her attention back on the console.

The Monkeys team??? Kat re-checked the name and found she hadn't misread; four Hammer Rock zoids, small and maneuverable but incredibly powerful, one carried a long range canon, two carried powerful machine guns and one was set up solely to tangle in close combat. A formidable combination in anyone's language.

The final team in the competition was called the Arachnattack team; three Guysack zoids and a new type of zoid known as the Atraxrobustus Spider, an eight-legged monstrosity that could be described as a cross between a Shadow Fox and an Elephander; two blades pointed down from the head, but could be pointed forwards for charging attacks, they were said to rival those of a Blade Liger, a double barrel 45mm rotating beam gun sat between the thorax and abdomen, fixed to the same mount, but unable to rotate with the beam gun were two .45mm machine guns, finally the abdomen boasted an inbuilt gattling cannon that fired Electromagnetic Nets.

She looked up at the big-screen to find that Cyrus had found the Raptor team.

…………………

Cyrus cursed as the Rev Raptors ran into the trees and out of his sights. He caught glimpses of them every now and again, but as long as they stayed in the forest and kept moving he couldn't touch them, the bright side though was their inability to fire back making it a stalemate that Cyrus could walk away from, fly away from at his leisure, besides, while chasing the Raptors team was great fun it had the added bonus of opening up the forest area of the map.

………………….

'Kong' stared through the sights of his long range rifle as his teammates argued with each other on either side of him, their topic of gripe seemed to be their highly successful but incredibly boring sniper tactic.

"_C'mon dudes, this sucks; I say we blow this job and find a fight_" 'Diddy' whined.

"_Stay put!_" 'Ban' commanded "_this method works just fine, like Gokuwa said it would_"

The plan was rather simple and the Monkey team was executing it perfectly by anyone's standards; Gokuwa in the Hammer Rock that had been modified for close combat had been circling a small area to carve out a circle in the map that extended only to the limits of Kong's long range cannon, since completing that task Gokuwa had been cruising the area as bait while Kong with Diddy and Ban guarding him in their mid-ranged zoids had waited on the hill for anyone to come within gunshot.

So far they had removed three teams and were waiting for a fourth to fall into their trap.

**Yep, Chapter 50. Some people consider this a milestone, but since I'm probably not going to be updating much while I'm at Uni it probably warrents some commiseration.**

**Frankly I can't be bothered with that either so I'll torture you with my new little section I call 'Taken Out Of Context'**

Jhese wandered the compound, he could remember parking his partner out the front of the house, but the zoid simply wasn't there, after a final lap Jhese headed to the hanger to use the phone, he needed to call Cyrus and the Z.B.C. he needed to report his missing zoid. As he reached for the door he noticed the water creeping out from underneath. Jhese flung the door open "What th-" his partner looked down at him; soaking wet and covered in soap suds "What the HELL are you doing?" Jhese yelled as he noticed the four bikini clad women washing his zoid.

_Well I noticed that Kat seems to be becoming the main character in the story, I'm positive she won't steal our thunder after she sees this!_

"What do you mean after-?" Jhese's voice trailed away as a shadow fell over his own, he whirled to see Kat standing behind him gazing up at the four girls crawling over Jhese's zoid.

**No, this has nothing to do with the story, Kat is not leaving, hence the name 'Taken Out Of Context' this will not become filler and will only be present when I can be bothered...unless of course the majority of you hate it, in which case it will cease by my next update. **

**Reviews are always appreciated!**


	51. Chapter 51

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Cyrus cursed as Jhese and David's dots reached the point on the map where the re-arming bunker was located, he peeled away from chasing the 'Raptors and angled for his teammates knowing that there would be war when he got there.

…………………..

Sure enough there were foes waiting for the Crew team pair as they reached the bunker; Keith Mack shifted his grips on the mechanical spider's controls, straining his eyes to see his teammates, not an easy task considering the camouflaged Guysacks had had ample time to hide themselves, even the lack of cover was a minor challenge to a zoid that resembled a rock formation when it stood on a showroom floor.

"_Yo Keith, do I see some pigeons coming in to roost?_" Keith gave up looking for the three Guysack zoids and looked for the 'pigeons' that Samuel had mentioned.

"_Bonza mate. That's them alright; the Hound Soldier and Gogu Dragon, the 'Dragon must be coming in to change armour…we'll take the mutt while he's gone and blast him when he emerges_"

Manny Tyler's voice came over the comm. unit "_Aw c'mon Keith, I reckon w could take 'em both with no worries_"

"_That doesn't mean we need to mate, no need to tangle with two when we don't need to, why bother?_" Jhonno Smith was probably the most level headed of the group, frankly Keith wondered why Jhonno couldn't be bothered being the leader; his planning skills were second to none among his teammates, his ability to think under pressure was phenomenal and women loved him, not that had a huge impact on leadership, Keith just wished that they wouldn't run straight past him into Jhonno's arms.

"_He's in, let's knock his mate off and ambush him!_" Keith charged, not exactly an accurate description for an eight legged zoid but no better term came to mind, over the short meadow that separated his zoid from his hidden teammates.

……………..

David looked up as he heard the charging zoid and his zoid staggered as a laser bolt hit it in the back "Damn it!" David fed ion juice to the accelerator and the Hound Soldier lurched towards the black spider zoid.

Keith reared his zoid back to reveal the intimidating red paint that was hidden under his zoids fangs, lighting up the fang-blades in their red energy to further the effect, the 'Hound pulled up short and spun back to find escape cut off by the three Guysack zoids.

David spun his zoid in a tight circle; allowing him to look at all his opponents, three Guysacks and a big spider type zoid. _They must have been one of the only teams left with a full line-up_ David reasoned, he knew he couldn't take all four of them; but he could stall for time.

Keith started in surprise as the Hound Soldier whirled and charged straight at his zoid; avoiding the attacks of the three Guysacks and leaving them in a cloud of discharged smoke. _This can't be _an amazed Keith wondered in disbelief _everyone goes for the Guysacks when they're trapped like this, the Guysacks are the weaker zoids!_

Recovering quickly Keith dropped his zoid in preparation for the charge.

A huge impact shook the Atraxrobustus Spider and hurled it sideways, Keith cried out as his zoid slid sideways, he looked about frantically, there had to be another zoid about. The Gogu Dragon was still in the bunker…a shadow passed over his zoid and Keith looked up to see the Buster Eagle soaring over, another shot laid out one of the Guysacks, its systems frozen by the powerful Buster Canon. Keith coaxed his 'Spider back to its eight legs and hit a button on the console; his harness tightened and his seat dropped back further until Keith was lying down, a system straight from the Gunsniper zoids rolled him over so that he was now facing backwards and hanging from his seat and gripping the net gun with his hands, he reached out and hooked his feet into the control handles, this would allow him to control the zoid on a minimal level, enabling him to make three hundred and sixty degree turns, giving him a far greater field of fire than any Gunsniper.

Cyrus whistled as he dove under the first electromagnetic net, his Buster Eagle making a similar crooning noise. _Damn it _Cyrus moaned _just like Jhese, I'm loosing my marbles._ He soared over another net and weaved past a third, the shots were coming far more frequently as this went on and Cyrus was forced away from the conflict. The Buster Eagle responded to its pilot's frustration by screaming furiously.

Jhese burst from the bunker, skating forwards on the Peacemaker Dragon's hover thrusters _they must have been working on that like crazy _thought Cyrus as the pair slid past a Guysack; the 'Dragon whipped its tail and three spindly legs were knocked out from under the scorpion type zoid, the 'Dragon then pirouetted and fired on the downed zoid, the electromagnetic nets stopped and Cyrus stole a glimpse of David dogging the spider zoid with his Hound Soldier's chest mounted beam canons.

Jhese's voice began yelling over the comm. he seemed to have hit the button accidently because Cyrus couldn't tell who he was talking to "_Yeah, good shooting…no I didn't bump your controls on purpose…watch out here comes another-wait its two of 'em!...the gattling gun, are you nuts? Fine, we'll do it your way_" suddenly the gattling guns on the Peacemaker Dragon's 'wings' lit up and the zoid went mad; it spun and dodged and sprayed everything in the area with hot lead.

Once again Jhese's voice came over the comm. "_Aaaaarrrrgh! Whew, nice…spray, we don't need no bug spray, we just sprayed everything in sight_" Cyrus caught sight of David having problems with the spider zoid and rushed to help, as he lined up the metal spider he heard Jhese again "_That's three for us…good job partner!_" Cyrus grinned, Jhese certainly wasn't suffering insanity; he was loving every second of it.

…………………….

Kat covered her face in her hand, even though her team had just put themselves in the final three, Jhese had spent the entire thing talking to his zoid using the comm. system, meaning that everyone watching their battle had heard his ramblings. She listened to David as he thanked Cyrus for the save and berated Jhese for his antics, then she flicked through the channels to find out what the other two teams were up to.

The first team she found was the Raptors team.

…………………

Deino sighed, they had lost the Buster Eagle, for some reason the flying zoid had simply packed it up and flown off, the only real benefit of the whole encounter was the amount of ground they had covered unmolested. They had opened up the whole forest on the map, while it only counted for an eighth of the map; their previous conflicts meant that they now had three eighths of the map unrevealed.

Thera and Utah stood on either side of him as he studied the map and landscape "_Okay, logically these two spots are where our enemies are. Depending on how many we actually have left they could be crawling with enemies, or there could just be that Buster Eagle remaining…the way I see it, where we stand now an enemy would have to be doing mach 4 to reach us within a minute, so what do we do, wait or hunt?_" the two Rev Raptors shifted as they weighed their options, none of them liked the idea of facing the Buster Eagle without ranged weapons, and that bum mercenary Derik 'Stalker' Stiller had gone and got himself shot.

Knowing that the Buster Eagle had headed south the Raptor team headed north-east to the second unopened area.

………………..

Cyrus watched the three dots that represented the Raptors team heading away from them to the north-east "_Hey, David, Jhese the 'Raptors are getting away, I couldn't get them before because they were in the forest, but with you two on the ground we can bust 'em good_"

"_I dunno Cyrus_" replied David "_we don't have much idea about that area, it's probably their turf…they might have even made allies in that area_"

"_I kind of agree with David on this one_" Jhese said as he piloted the Wraith Dragon out of the CAS bunker, the only armour remaining that hadn't taken damage "_But we do need to check it out, we can't win without fighting at some point_"

With that the three headed north-east.

**Done done done! At least this chapter anyway...for anyone who cares, punch Atrax robustus into google to find out what the spider zoid is based on, for those who can't be bothered it's a Sydney Funnel Web and worth a look, thankfully they live in holes in Sydney two hours south of me, scary bits of mongrel spider like that can't be healthy, and that's before you think about the highly potent venom. **


	52. Chapter 52

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Deino, Thera and Utah pushed their zoids to the limits, racing over the plains in mad patterns, knowing it was their only hope of evading the sights of the tiny speck of a zoid on the faraway hill.

Deino thanked his stars as another shot hit the ground where he might have been if Thera hadn't cut in front of him with her own, slowing him down.

They had method in staying within gunshot of the sniper though, they were closing the gap.

Utah jinked his controls and swung between his two teammates; forcing them both on new tangents.

………………….

Kong howled angrily as the shot hit the dirt again, the maddening Rev Raptors had gotten off lucky the first time; a playful shove had pushed his target out of the way and since then the zoids had been on the move. Even from such a distance a moving target could be hit if the trajectory was anticipated, however, the bumping, darting and overall agility of the Raptors team had allowed them to remain un-hit, plus they were closing in.

…………………….

A dot appeared on the map and Deino looked up, the Hammer Rock sat in the middle of the meadow, its thick arms opened wide, an invitation to shoot, or fight. The Hammer Rock was a small class zoid, like the 'Raptors but was known to pack a punch that mocked its small size; a miniature Iron Kong in looks and power.

Deino considered his options, to engage the Hammer Rock in combat was suicide; it had to be an ally to whatever was firing from the hill; otherwise it would have been shot. However Deino knew that Hammer Rocks had ranged weaponry, if they just ran past the zoid it would open fire on one of them; maybe even shut one of them down.

……………………

Gokuwa's Hammer Rock flew through the air, hit the ground, rolled and finally skidded to a halt. Kong scanned the area desperately with his scope; searching for the culprit.

It was Diddy who spotted it first; a speck that was quickly growing in size "_Yo Kong, we got us a flyer comin' in at 10 o'clock, too far away to say what exactly_" Kong located the speck and magnified it, a Buster Eagle.

Kong pulled the trigger, but the zoid rolled to the side. Kong located it again and the zoid dipped down out of his sight _damn! I can't hit him_ the Buster Eagle was now fully visible to Ban and Diddy who opened fire with their powerful machine guns; forcing the zoid to pull away early.

Kong looked about and located the Raptors team; he also spotted another two zoids charging towards him using a similar tactic to the 'Raptors. Kong snarled and tried sighting the Hound Soldier, but it was hopeless, he simply could not do it with a telescopic sight. As quickly as he could Kong swapped from sight to computer targeting, the computer program for the Hammer Rock had a limited range; far shorter than the telescopic sight he had been using and his gun had a painfully slow reloading time, he would have to rely on Diddy and Ban's machine guns to keep their opponents at bay.

The three Rev Raptors fanned out and charged. Kong caught one in his crosshairs and fired, the shot hit the Rev Raptor in the side, followed by a chain of machine gun fire, the agile zoid buckled under the combined attack and collapsed, a loud explosion rent the air beside Kong and he looked to see Diddy's zoid crash to the ground some yards distant. Ban turned his machine gun on the offending zoid and hit it several times before it dipped and crashed

…………………

Cyrus cursed and thumped the controls as his Buster Eagle bumped to a halt, thankfully the damage was cheap, but it had made his zoid un-flyable, and the bumpy landing had frozen his controls, so he was out.

………………….

Jhese pounced on the Hammer Rock and shoved its machine gun off to the side, away from Cyrus's zoid; but it was too late and the Buster Eagle hit the dirt, Jhese shot the gorilla zoid at point blank range; shutting down its command system. As the zoid went limp Jhese looked up and gasped, the final Hammer Rock's long range gun clicked into place…eight meters away and aiming at his zoid.

…………………

"_So, a little gorilla can beat a big, bad Dragon_" Kong crowed as he squeezed the trigger. A blur rushed in front of his zoid as the gun fired and the Hound Soldier shuddered under the impact and collapsed to the ground. Kong pushed forwards on the controls, with his gun re-loading he needed to engage in melee attacks before the 'Dragon could bring its front claws off the ground. His zoid lurched as one of the Rev Raptor's raced past, slashing his zoid with its side mounted blades. The 'Dragon whipped in a tight circle and hit the Rev Raptor with its tail; sending it crashing to the ground, the tough little zoid rolled to get to its feet and charged at the bigger zoid again.

The console beeped as Kong's next shot was ready, he grinned and aimed his rifle at the two clawing reptile zoids, he also forgot about the second Rev Raptor.

………………………..

Jhese hauled on the controls as the Rev Raptor went limp in Shads' jaws; the Wraith Dragon dropped its victim and spun again, rising onto its hind legs. The impact from the Rev Raptor's attack pushed the zoid back and they tripped over the downed 'Raptor to land with the Wraith Dragon flat on its back, holding the sharp claws and snapping jaws of the Rev Raptor at bay with the 'Dragon's own teeth and talons _Damn!_ Jhese cursed _stalemate_.

_Are you mad?_ Shads demanded _Talons!_

Jhese grinned and got on the comm.

……………….

Thera blinked in surprise as her comm. light flashed, a scrawny pilot's face appeared on her screen, _the 'Dragon's pilot _she reasoned, the pilot grinned "_Shaking hands with a winner is nice_" Thera blinked again, then screamed in frustration as her zoid pulsed with blue energy.

……………………

Jhese sighed as Shads pushed the immobilized 'Raptor off, a light on his console flashed and Official Chase's grizzled features appeared on his screen "_Congratulations warrior, yours is the last zoid standing in this competition, and in accordance with the rules this makes your team the winners of the Battle Royal competition, the location of the docks will be posted to your zoid, please head to those co-ordinates and well done_"

……………………

Several hours later Jhese stood in the dock's cafeteria with his teammates and all the other class B warriors who had competed in the competition, all zoids had been collected and readied for the ferry trip back to the continent, meanwhile the pilots had gathered to meet and socialize before the award ceremony, Jhese had been introduced to some of his opponents during the competition, the Raptors team who had hired the mercenary Derik 'Stalker' Stiller, had come over led by the young lady known as Thera to introduce themselves, the Monkeys team had stopped to shake hands with the Crew team before fading back into the crowd, Kat's fan-club had thrown themselves at their goddesses feet, before their leader, Gilbert, had sheepishly stood up to shake Jhese's hand.

Official Chase had then stood up and tapped a spoon against a glass to get everyone's attention, when that failed he had disappeared into a back room, re-emerging with a gong and striker.

As the vibrations died off the air and silence reined the ZBC Official began to speak "Now first we have the minor awards, first of all, top speed attained went to Jacob Browning and his Redler mach 3.1, it was some dive, I assure you, come on up Jacob" a well built man in his twenties walked up on stage to accept his small reward. Behind him, on the big screen, footage of his zoid diving towards the ground rolled, he then moved to the side.

"Now for the land speed awards…heh, predictably enough the words Lightning Siax are written on this page, Kathleen Raystone at two hundred miles an hour…however, Miss Raysone will be joined by, not one, but two other pilots who accomplished the same feat; Jhese Rivers in the Storm Dragon and Derik Stiller in his custom Gun Sniper. The screen split to show Kat's Lightning Siax and Jhese's Storm Dragon charging along under full boost; it also showed how a Gun Sniper had attained such speeds.

Derik froze on the stairs, blood draining from his face as he watched his zoid being blown from its vantage point by Cyrus's Buster Eagle. The zoid had bounced, ran and rolled its way to the huge speed before crashing to the ground.

Derik looked at Jhese and Kat to see Jhese watching the footage and Kat holding her stomach and shaking violently as laughter took over.

Derik turned to escape, but the spotlight caught him, trapped, Derik numbly walked up on stage to shake hands with Official Chase "You were lucky to survive that fall, we thought this might help get your zoid working again" the Official whispered as he presented the three with their prizes.

"Everyone's coveted prize" the official continued as the three left the stage "is the individual point score, many of us forgo this award for the sake of teamwork, but we desire it all the same, in years past this award has never been taken by a member of the winning team, but rather by a pilot who has been in it for themselves.

"This year however, it gives me great pleasure to present the individual point score to Cyrus Rhine!"

Footage rolled of the Buster Eagle bombing the Tank and Barrage teams, dropping AZ missiles behind his zoid to take out three Pteras zoids and a Redler, blasting a Hammer Rock, Colby's Sabre Wolf, even shooting down Keith's spider zoid.

Cyrus blushed madly as he walked up on stage to shake Official Chase's hand "Five Zabats, two Pteras zoids, a Gun Sniper, a Sabre Wolf, Redler, Rev Shinobi, two Red Horns, a Dibison, an Atraxrobustus Spider and two Hammer Rocks; not bad for a day's work young man" the Official announced in congratulations, pumping Cyrus's hand up and down "now, if you'll stay up here" the official caught Cyrus's collar as he turned to the stairs "My final announcement is the class B Battle Royal competition winners, can I cal to the stage, Kathleen Raystone, Jhese Rivers and David McDougal. Warriors, I give you your champions; the Crew team!!!"

As the gathered warriors cheered for the winning team, Jhese looked at his teammates; David shifted nervously, not a fan of being in the spotlight, Cyrus grinned from ear to ear and waved both hands at the applause, Kat simply leaned against him and soaked it all in. to Jhese's delight she stayed that way on the ferry trip back to the continent.

……………………

Thomo greeted the newest class A team warmly "Orders have started flowing in for Gogu Dragons again! We're gonna be rich!"

"Good thing we have all that prize money, 'cause we aren't going to be rich when we finish repairs" Cyrus deadpanned "the 'Eagle needs its controls fixed, the 'Siax has a huge hole and a damaged leg, the Hound Soldier has almost identical problems and the only undamaged armour for the 'Dragon is the Ironmonger set-up"

"At least you and David have backup zoids; I'm out until the 'Siax is operational again" Kat scowled "Even seeing Derik's face at the awards ceremony doesn't help that much"

A buzzing sound began in the lab and Thomo checked the security cameras; a white Liger Zero appeared, flanked by two Command Wolves and a Koning Wolf. The comm. buzzed and Christian Barker's voice hailed them "_Yo, Crew team! No one was home, so I checked in here. I wanna congratulate the newest class A team_"

Dean's voice accompanied it "_Or we could just pummel their butts and help send them back to class B_" he paused "_Oh right, we like these guys don't we?_"

Thomo pushed a button and the lab's huge blast door lifted clear of the ground; the four zoids moved in, making the huge lab seem quite small rather suddenly. Jhese noted with some amusement the decals and stickers that adorned the left foreleg of the Liger Zero, Christian caught him staring as the cockpit opened "Heh, that's the latest craze in class A, we each make a team logo sticker and give them to people who beat us in battle, we've won quite a few ourselves"

"A logo?" Cyrus repeated…

**Yep, a logo, this will be my avatar for a little while and no I haven't finished it yet. It'l be up with the next chapter, and I will be describing it to the best of my abilities. I'm telling you all this because I want to test my descriptions, and the best judges would be...you.**


	53. Chapter 53

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Jhese sat in Shads' cockpit, trying to think about the logo, but something distracted him, a niggling rhythm, like a familiar tune just on the edge of hearing, Jhese craned his neck and looked out from around the canopy, nothing in the hanger but him and the Crew team's damaged zoids, and Shads, realization struck like a hammer.

Jhese thumped his partner's console "Shut UP damn it!" the singing stopped and his partner sniffed, obviously offended "look…I'm sorry okay, we just can't think of a logo, and I figured sitting out here with you might help me draw what this team is about…"

_Waffles?_

"…what?"

_Kidding, how is my singing not helping that?_

"When is Mmbopp ever helpful?"

_I like it._

"I thought you had a MALE personality?"

_You're in denial._

"Jerk"

_I want my polish, we made a bet. Remember?_

Jhese grinned "Jerk" but he climbed out of the cockpit and hunted down the cleaning gear "Oi you, change the channel and put something decent on, there aren't any females present"

"Jhese, I'm a tomboy not a guy…or are you not telling me something?" Jhese whipped around, cracked his head on a locker door and fell to the ground, Kat rushed over to him.

_Nooo! _Yelled a voice in Jhese's head _he's fine, skull's as thick as my armour! Help him polish me!_

Jhese concentrated hard to project his thoughts to his partner _your concern is touching._

_Hey, I got twenty four-seven surveillance in your head, I know when you're hurt _the zoid retorted, then grunted, a metallic cough.

Jhese stood up before Kat arrived and shook his head "Sorry, you surprised me. I thought we were alone"

"We? You still talk to your zoid as though it's human" it wasn't a question.

"Shad's is not human, but he is sentinant, it's like the way you talk to a pet, or a car"

Kat brightened "Oh, speaking of cars…" she pulled out a little pine tree "I'm sure your zoid wouldn't want to smell of sweaty male all the time"

_My hero-um heroine!_

Jhese shook his head as Kat climbed into the cockpit to fix the deodorizing tree "I'll never hear the end of this…" he muttered.

Kat's head popped around the canopy "I came around from Thomo's; he sent me with a trailer for you" she climbed out and walked past Jhese to the stairs, Jhese fell in behind her and a voice entered his head.

_I know you're perving on her butt…_

Jhese grinned and ducked around Kat to open the door, Kat smiled sweetly and kept walking, she hit the button to open the main hanger door. The huge door swung open, revealing that Kat had driven the Gustav and it was indeed hauling a trailer.

Jhese opened the trailer's control box to find a note from Thomo, Jhese read it out loud:

"_Jhese._

_I wont be around for a while, got an interview with the zoids manufacturing company ZOITEC, they want me to become a top designer for them, well actually, I think they just want rights to build the Gogu Dragon, but still I hope…either way I have given you a spare set of Gogu armour so you have at least one thing less to worry about while you try to get your teammate's zoids working again._

_Keep up the good work and I shall see you in the future._

_Thomo._

_p.s. I have put David's new components in the trailer too"_

"David never said he ordered new components…they mustn't be that important if they had slipped his mind" Jhese tapped the key sequence to open the trailer and stood back to observe the new Gogu armour "Ah" Jhese murmured as the trailer completely exposed the armour "completely standard…just the way I like it-wait, he actually installed the tail-blade, hmm well, maybe Thomo has better toys than I do"

Kat grinned at Jhese "like a fool with an upgraded videogame"

"You were over the moon when Thomo and I tightened up the Random Special upgrades" Jhese shot back.

"A girl's gotta have her fashion accessories" Kat replied, puffing her tight red ponytail with one hand "appearances need to be kept clean and proper"

"Heh, and you thought I wondered if you were something other than female…speaking of clean, I have a partner to attend to, I promised him a polishing…so he's getting it"

"If zoids have the awareness you claim, then I better borrow some cleaning gear and do my 'Siax"

The pair looked up as a zoid roared in greeting; the Raynos-powered-Redler dropped to the ground in front of them, its canopy hissed as it opened and Cyrus jumped out "David will be along later to see this new component, hey Jhese, when you have time…is it possible to convert this to a two seater?"

"Oh sure, as long as you don't need…well, removing the console would probably give us enough room"

"Smartarse underling, a 'no' would suffice. How're the repairs coming?"

"Not doing them yet, washing zoids now"

Cyrus patted his spotless zoid "Washed this before I came over, any point in washing my 'Eagle?"

"I prefer to fix clean ones?"

"That's good enough for me"

Kat jumped into the Gustav and motored through the doors, parking the trailer in the roomy workshop. Jhese sprinted past her and activated the robotic arm; swinging it around to remove the Wraith armour from its mountings on Shads' frame, the process with one robotic arm was much slower than it was with the multiple arms of a Hover Cargo or a re-arm bunker, by the time Jhese had finished David had arrived.

The Command Wolf stopped just outside and poked its head in the door, straining to look in without disobeying its master's command to stay outside, just like a regular dog and the rest of David's team laughed, the pilot allowed himself an amused grin before leaping from the cockpit and moving towards the others "you can't have completely repaired the Gogu armour already can you? It's only been a day"

Jhese threw a sponge at David, the older buy caught it in a smooth sweep of his hand, and Jhese yelled "Clean your Hound Soldier. I'm not fixing it 'till it's clean"

Foam flew thick in Jhese's hanger that day, so did good natured insults, taunts, stories and boasts. Kat told the boys of her time with Matt Wing, Jhese tried to tell her about 'Stalker' but Shads kept interrupting and Jhese gave it up and handed the story over to Cyrus, it was just like when they were bounty hunters all over again.

It was times like this that Jhese truly knew who his family was.

………………….

The day was finally over and the zoids sparkled to the point where Jhese actually looked forwards to the repair work, it was nowhere near as much work since the zoids were spotless, he might even have time to give some tune-ups to all of them-the idea for a logo struck Jhese like a rock and he snatched up his mechanics notebook; a stylized anchor with elements of each Crew member's zoid; the maroon trimmed head of Kat's Lightning Siax, the wings of Cyrus's Buster Eagle, David's Hound Soldier melee lances and Shads' claws. Just for the sake of it he cut it out and put it on a rising sun flag, adding some blur with red and black texta.

Jhese groaned as his arms turned to jelly; polishing some eighty tonnes of metal by hand had taken its toll on him, and having the others get it done with the orbital buffers, offer to help him and leave when he refused had just hurt.

_On the bright side, I really enjoyed that _Shads purred.

"Why wouldn't you let the others help, I think I hurt their feelings when I wouldn't let them"

_A deal's a deal kiddo. You lost and I love you for it._

Although he wanted to keep up a tough front Jhese's heart melt.

**Is up, is done. Go see the Crew team logo in my profile! Tell me if you like it or if I described it badly, hell, tell me if it sucks, I'll listen...to the words you've written...**

**Some time or other I have to give them an inexpensive win. How can it be the Custom King if Jhese spnds all his time repairing the zoids rather than customizing them? Ah well, sooner or later they'll get into class S where the new story of Custom King S can start. 'Till then please read this story and tell me what you think **


	54. Chapter 54

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Planet Zi had some of the most confusing inhabitants of any planet. To be a naturalist a person had to be skilled in biology, mechanics, electrical technology and engineering. The planet had destroyed at least one civilization and a meteor had taken out another. And that was only since humans had arrived, nobody truly knew what had happened during the time of Zenobians.

The world of zoids was a truly complex subject and one that required lots of thinking and exploring. That was fine by David, because a trip to anywhere could take hours and those where hours that could be spent thinking.

David's Command Wolf paced alongside the Gustav that Kat was driving. Jhese and Cyrus were off somewhere just out of sight, in the Gogu Dragon and Buster Eagle respectively, the pair were scanning the area around the Gustav, bandits were a rarity these days but one could never be too careful, wild zoids had become common simply because no-one had cared to do anything about them during war times, bounty hunters aside of course.

David scanned the horizon then kicked back again; he had had a romantic notion, when he was younger, that wild zoids meant herds of Dibison roaming vast savannah, chased by the odd Liger Zero, the truth was…much less romantic; packs of ragtag zoids would attack villages like wild dogs to steal harvested ion from zoids and stores alike, these wild zoids were often hunted down and destroyed by bounty hunters, the best they could hope for in many areas, like this one, was to be chased off into the foodless desert or forced into farm service where they could at least find nourishment.

Very few people could truly tame wild zoids; some even stated that after so many years without a pilot the cockpit would seal itself permanently, David knew this to be false, he had once been to an archaeological dig with his father where they had opened the canopy of a Gordos, buried since the time of the Guardian Force.

The reason these thoughts skipped across David's mind was the battle that they headed towards; their opponents were called the Tamers team and had made it to class A using their semi wild zoids. Rumor had it that they had all the time in the world to fix their zoids because they could simply go out into the wild and tame new ones.

David knew some things about wild zoids though; wild zoids could not produce bullets and rarely carried projectile weapons as a result, sure they had beam weapons; laser beams were created from ion energy and as such were a renewable weapon. However beam weapons were short to mid-ranged because light weakened and dissipated over distances. This was the reason that David was piloting the Command Wolf; Cyrus and David doubted that the Tamer team would be arming their zoids with long-range guns, their data suggested that they rarely if ever equipped their zoids with accessories, preferring to rely on what, by all accounts was quite ferocious skills.

That was why all four Crew team members had come ready for battle; options.

Jhese had the Storm armour attached to the Gogu Dragon, Cyrus had the Buster Eagle, David was in the Command Wolf A.C. and Kat was driving the Gustav to haul two trailers; one with her Lightning Siax and one with Jhese's Ironmonger armour, they had bought some ammo, but would stock up on most of it in town, having two days left before the battle..

A puff of dust caught David's eye and he thumbed the comm. "_Yo Jhese, you headin' back?_"

Jhese's curious face popped up on David's monitor "_What, now?_"

David quickly got Cyrus on the comm. "_Guys, better start heading back, we've got something closing in fast_" Kat was the final call.

"_I'm on it_" Kat cut him off as the Gustav rolled to a halt, David put the Command Wolf between her and the growing dust trail. _Whatever they are, they're quick _David reasoned as the unknown bogies closed in. David ducked by reflex as Cyrus zoomed over in a low pass, he reddened a bit then cursed himself for ducking, and he hadn't even made the Command Wolf duck.

"_Two sinkers, an Attack Kat and a Molga. Could they be raiders?_"

Jhese's Storm Dragon skidded to a halt beside David's Command Wolf and Kat's Lightning Siax, Cyrus's Buster Eagle landed soon after. All four zoids of the Crew team stood shoulder to shoulder as the zoids approached.

The four zoids stopped a respectable distance away and the canopies opened; four females jumped out and started running across the desert_ four beautiful females_ David amended. He only vaguely registered Kat leaping from her Lightning Siax before she was among the four strangers sharing hugs kisses and greetings. Three jaws slammed on three consoles as the Crew team canopies hissed open.

"Do you see what I see?" Cyrus breathed.

"If you see every wet dream you've ever had about Kat doing re-runs in your head then yes" David replied. He realized what he said as the Storm Dragon whacked his 'Wolf soundly with its tail. David felt the colour rise in his face and grinned stupidly "Sorry Jhese, it kinda popped out"

Jhese flashed his usual amiable grin before he snarled "If it pops out around Kat I'll break IT off and kick it around on the ground!"

"Easy Jhese" breathed Cyrus who couldn't believe he was playing peacemaker between David and Jhese "It's kind of hard not to notice how beautiful Kat is"

"You seemed to manage fine" Jhese shot back

"Actually I didn't, I was too gutless to ask her out" the three lapsed back into silence; David was thankful that his words had done no harm, Jhese considering Cyrus's words and Cyrus went back to watching Kat and the strangers.

Kat waved her teammates over and a short while later the three boys were being introduced to Kat's aunt and cousins.

Kat's Aunt Rhonda was a tall woman of some forty years, although age failed to hide the sunning woman she must have been in her youth; her dark auburn hair still showed no signs of grey. She wore plain cotton clothes of drab browns, desert gear David reasoned, a woman of practical nature.

Belle was eighteen and the oldest of Kat's cousins; unlike the others she had brown hair which she wore short and practical, flat chested and built like an athlete, David guessed that running must be one of her favorite pass-times. Tight jeans enhanced her long legs and she wore a strange red short jacket over a white tee-shirt. Her shoes confirmed David's theory of her being a runner; sneakers that looked like they had seen a thousand miles in their life.

Fifteen year old Piper had flaming orange hair and looked set to become the eye catcher her mother must have been. Clearly she dressed to impress; David might have believed her short shorts were a practical measure for the desert heat if she hadn't worn a black tank top and black thigh-high stockings with it, David looked up to see her watching him, she arched an eyebrow and he blushed madly.

The youngest was a happy fourteen year old with a blend of her mother's auburn and her older sister's orange, Karin looked at the boys with a big smile "So, you're Kat's teammates. Hope Kat forgives you after we beat you down" her bright green eyes sparkled over her emerald jacket and khaki pants, she held out a gloved hand. David noted the gloves; fingerless and black, and worn by every member of the-

"You guys are the Tamers team?" Kat asked in surprise.

"You didn't know?" Rhonda exclaimed with surprise.

"Cyrus didn't give us names…and he probably wouldn't have figured it out"

Cyrus grinned "Little pictures don't quite show your resemblance to Kat like seeing you together; besides, Friar isn't exactly a big hint that you're related to Reystone"

Rhonda Friar grinned "Her father was my brother-"

"Aunt Rhonda, why aren't you still the WilderZ team?"

"Oh well, this isn't my team, I retired from zoids battles quite a few years back, this is their team" she indicated her daughters with a wave of her hand "I'm just their mother-but I've had quite enough of standing around in the desert, lets go back to the ranch and have some lunch, you must tell me how you've been these past few years" with that she turned and strode back to the Molga, Karin ran for her Attack Kat and Belle for her Sinker, Piper smirked at David before tossing her long ponytail and heading towards her own Sinker.

As the Crew team headed back towards their own zoids Kat wrapped them up in a big hug "If you guys even think of touching my cousins I will skin you alive"

……………….

It turned out that they had been on 'the Ranch' for the past hour, but the ranch-house stood in the middle of the property, seemingly on the borderline between harsh deserts and a cool mountain forest.

The house was roomy, but seemed set up for comfort, as they entered the lounge room Belle threw herself down on the couch "Better have those boys of yours house-trained Kat, you know what mum's like at the table"

Kat looked at her teammates as Karin threw herself down on the couch next to her eldest sister; Cyrus was laughing outrageously at Jhese who seemed to have fallen over while taking his shoes off, David-

………………..

David felt the wind rush out of his lungs as Piper slammed him up against the wall "Get a good look perv boy?" David stumbled for an answer and his cheeks began burning as they turned red "Ooh a shy one eh? This might be fu-"

Piper's sentence was cut short as she was hauled back and spun around to stand face to face with Kat "I already told my teammates no funny business or there'd be hell to pay" Kat's voice held more chill than death and Piper stared wide-eyed at her cousin like a mouse captivated under a snake's gaze "You know what I'm capable of little girl…" Piper covered her mouth and shrank back, her face draining of color as quickly as David's had filled, her aqua eyes never leaving her cousin's steel blue glare "scram" the smaller girl fled as quickly as she could; half scrambling, half sprinting.

David sighed in relief and slumped against the wall, his body went rigid again as he felt his red-haired teammate's steel blue glare settle on him, he looked up at Kat and she relaxed "Seems I'm gonna have to watch you closer, it's always the quiet ones"

David found his voice 'Why is she so scared of you?" he asked quietly.

Kat grinned like a shark, or a demon "When we were thirteen I caught her playing tonsil hockey with my…boyfriend at the time, I thought they made too nice a couple to split up, so I super glued their teeth together, the ultimate lip-lock"

………………..

"It was so nice of you boys to help out around the Ranch, the girls are wonderful, but they don't know much about machinery" Rhonda commented as Jhese, Cyrus and David trooped past her to the wash rooms and Richard isn't about much with his job in the city"

"Your husband isn't a Rancher?" Jhese asked; his interest piqued.

"Oh heavens. No! He has his own Hell Runner that gets him safely to and from work, but aside from Skate, his zoid, zoids tend to hate him. It might have something to do with his being an engineer though"

"I thought an engineer might get along well with zoids?" Jhese pressed and Rhonda laughed.

"He's not a mechanic dear; he's not even a zoids engineer. He builds factories"

Just then David heard a zoid and poked his head out the door. The Hell Runner skidded to a halt and shook its head before opening its canopy. A man hopped out, a man so ordinary that he wouldn't stand out in a gang of rappers, a bandit camp or a family of gorgeous women. He bustled inside, loaded down with a briefcase and what appeared to be shopping "Honey, I'm ho-oh company!" he spotted Jhese and David and, in his rush to hold out his hand in greeting, dropped the lot.

Jhese and David held up their messy hands, not wanting to abandon Mr. Friar but unwilling to smear engine grease all over anything. They were save by Cyrus, who had continued on to the bathroom, he quickly turned his teammates in the direction of the wash room and bent to help the man pick up his gear.

When Jhese and David returned Mr. Friar grinned and held out his hand "Call me Steve boys. I hear you've come to try and defeat my daughters, and you've come armed with my niece"

David and Jhese grinned and shook the offered hand "Sorry we couldn't help out earlier, but our hands were-"

"A mess, I saw. I was actually worried you might get those grubby paws on the shopping" he grinned "a trio of mechanics eh?"

"Actually" Cyrus corrected him "Jhese is the only mechanic, we're just being helpful"

"Hired muscle eh? Well, I'm taking over the kitchen so why don't you get Rhonda to show you all around the Ranch"

"Hey, thanks Mr. Friar" Cyrus said.

"Oh please, Mr. Friar makes me feel like a pastor, call me Steve" the boys laughed and went to find Kat.

……………….

The Tamers team Ranch encouraged wild zoids, and the best way of viewing it was from the sky, or from the trailer; a standard trailer that a person might find being dragged behind a Gustav; it had been modified to carry people, three rows of seats and plenty of leg room. Rhonda claimed that as long as the weather held there could be no better way to see the wild zoids.

Wild zoids was a bit of a mixed statement; it actually seemed to be a combination of wild zoids, strays and castaways. _The zoids did seem to stick with their own kind_ he noted with interest, 'Wolves ran in small packs that contained standard units and some upgraded ones, Dibison did travel in herds as did Red Horns and Gators. David surveyed the farm with an enthusiasm that carried only one taint.

Piper.

David could feel Piper's aqua eyes boring into the back of his head as the trailer trundled along behind the Red Horn; she was trying to make him nervous, and succeeding. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Cyrus sat next to him; he felt the shift and looked at the younger pilot "David, are you okay?"

David looked at his friend miserably "Hell no. I have caught the attention of a demon and the only thing that keeps it at bay is Kat, I can't stick close to her because Jhese is still pissed at me, and to cap it all off; the demon is gorgeous"

Cyrus stifled a chuckle "You should write a book about that, it'd be great; Beautiful and terrible" he turned serious "just try focusing on something else, like how we might be able to use what we've seen to our advantage"

David focused on a pride of Zaber Fangs as they passed by, noting the damaged leg on one and a broken fang on another "Some of these zoids are in really rough shape…" he mused quietly.

…………………..

Steve Friar put together a huge feast, and in the face of such delicious food even the warriors managed to forget their upcoming competition. Cyrus again sat next to David, but all his attention was on Karin as she told him about herself, leaving David to sit silently, listening to Jhese and Kat talking to Belle while ignoring Piper as she made eyes at him.

Rhonda announced the end of the meal and informed the girls that it was time to pick someone for guard duty "Jhese can do it" Kat piped up, Jhese looked up in surprise, but a quick kick in the leg wised him up.

"Yeah, I can"

………………….

Jhese sat on Shads' foot and stared out over the two vastly different areas that made the Ranch.

_Your friend seems distressed_ the zoid noted.

"Oh yeah…which one?" Jhese asked absently.

_David, he seems to be having problems with one of Kat's…cousins…I don't understand, what is a cousin?_

"It's a family thing" Jhese explained, wondering how to word it, he needn't have bothered.

_Ah, meat-bag terminology._

"Pretty much" Jhese agreed "so what's David's problem?"

_One of these 'cousins' is causing him some anguish; the one whose head looks like its on fire._

"Fire? Oh, you mean the red head, Piper?"

_Meh, Kat seems to be the only one who she steers clear of, but David is not willing to stick close to her and upset you._

"Since when have you been so perceptive?"

_The Love Dragon kindles the flames of passion._

"Uh huh, bullshit"

"You wouldn't be talking to that zoid again would you?" Jhese sat up as Kat wandered out of the darkness "people will think you're way too lonely"

"Are you offering company?" Jhese asked suggestively.

"Hmph, you're underage for that. You wouldn't want me in trouble for assaulting a minor would you?"

_BWA, HA, HA, HAAAAA!!! Zing!!!_ Roared Shads as Jhese blushed bright crimson.

Kat saw the blush and doubled up with laughter "You…should…s…see…y…your face!" she laughed for a while longer before she relented "aw did I stomp your ego? Here" she lent forward and brushed Jhese's lips with a soft kiss; restoring some of the boy's beaten pride.

………………….

David pulled his toothbrush out of his bath pack and ran it under the water, he looked up into the mirror and just like every other time in his life couldn't decide if he liked what stared back at him; khaki green eyes stared back at him from under messy black hair and bushy black eyebrows, an oddity considering his pale complexion, all his features held a chubbiness to them that made people think he was younger than his fifteen years, finally his mouth was wide with slightly big lips.

He didn't think he was Frankenstein's monster, but he wasn't Brad Hunter either.

David sighed and leaned towards the mirror, resting his head on the cool glass, but a click at the bathroom door made him stand bolt upright; he had locked the door, and now it was opening. Piper strolled in; she had changed into pyjamas; they didn't cling to her like her other outfit did, but something about her in the soft cotton left David breathless.

She looked up and covered her mouth with her hand "Ah, sorry, Bell and Karin spend so long in the…um I always carry a lock-pick to the bathroom, I had no idea you were in here" David was in no way indecent; he wore plain grey pyjamas pants and a blue shirt, hardly revealing, David slipped past her and out into the hall _she was lying _he reasoned _Piper had known he was in there and had tried to embarrass him further_. He left the house and walked out into the cool night air. He needed to think, and the best place to do that was in the cockpit of his father's Command Wolf, he headed towards the zoids.

David spotted Jhese, taking the first watch; he lay sprawled on the massive clawed foot of his zoid staring up at the sky "bit cold to be out in pjs isn't it?" Jhese hadn't moved "look David, about today…"

"I'm sorry I said that" David apologized.

"I'm sorry I got jealous" Jhese said at the same time.

The two were silent for a while, naturally Jhese broke it "Taking a shine to that Piper girl are you?" he asked mildly, unaware of what David had been through "she seems kind of loud for a quiet guy like you, pretty, but loud"

"Hardly" David said "I think she's toying with me"

....................

"Okay girls" Belle announced "time for a team meating, as we suspected Kat is the strong link, however, when they see the battlefield tomorrow she should be more than happy to let the three boys compete, Jhese seems to have eyes only for her, so he's no good, Piper, how are things progressing with the twerp?" she looked expectantly at her younger sister.

Piper grinned "That puppy is whipped, wasn't even a challenge"

"Shame, he's kinda cute" Belle grinned "Karin, Cyrus?"

"Cyrus is nice and friendly...but I don't think he's interested in me" the youngest admitted.

"Maybe these desert rats have a thing for older women, like Jhese and Kat; I think she's got two years on him. Let me deal with Cyrus tomorrow"

**Yep, big chapter...who am I kidding, it's huuuuuuuge! Two reminders: One, I have already started penning the Custom King S and two, check out the logo.**

**As always thanks for viewing and please find time for reviewing,**


	55. Chapter 55

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Ever since having to hire Derik 'Stalker' Stiller Cyrus had blamed himself, he believed that if he had taken his piloting skills more seriously, his team never would have been damaged enough to even consider hiring the mercenary.

Since then Cyrus had been rising early every morning to practice his flying skills; pressing himself and his zoid to the limits. Sometimes his teammates would join him; David had, on several occasions, equipped his Command Wolf with an AA gun and attempted to shoot Cyrus down, but mostly Cyrus flew alone; navigating the canyons at mach speeds, buzzing the dunes and blowing his targeting range to pieces, an activity that was proving costly not only in ammunition, but in targets as well, generally things hit by the Buster Canons stayed hit.

Cyrus swung his feet and immediately tripped inside the sleeping bag; he wasn't under covers on his bed, he was in a sleeping bag on the floor, Cyrus looked around at his teammates, Jhese slept with his mouth wide open and Cyrus resisted the urge to pull some kind of prank, Kat looked peaceful as she slept; not a trace of her wild energy could be seen, David was gone, _right, he took the second watch_. Cyrus padded into the bathroom and got dressed.

………………….

Less than a half hour later Cyrus walked out into the grey light of pre-dawn, he stretched happily, not because he hadn't already, simply because it felt good. The Buster Eagle came into view, a thrill coursed through Cyrus and he shivered.

She sat on the 'Eagle's talon; breathing deeply although quickly, Cyrus could tell at a glance that she had been running, even in the pre dawn light her skin glowed from a thin sheen of sweat, she looked up as he approached "Hi…you're up early" when Cyrus didn't answer she continued "sorry about my seat, but I can…'hear' a zoids emotions, your zoid was fairly singing with excitement for some reason, I just had to listen, now I see why" she smiled "there's something romantic about a pilot leaving on a misty morning, something mystical"

Cyrus grinned lopsidedly "There is something mystical, but I think having an athletic lady sitting on my zoid's foot in the dawn might seem like a strange reply"

Belle laughed "Good call. I have an Evo Flyer; it's not as fast as your Buster Eagle but …mind if I tag along?"

Cyrus grinned "Not if you can keep up" he jumped past the eighteen year old and scrambled to the Buster Eagle's cockpit "I'll wait until you get your zoid, but I don't plan on dawdling"

Belle laughed "You cocky sumbitch, I'll show you who dawdles, speed is MY thing" she sprinted off around the house and disappeared.

Cyrus felt his heart do a flip-flop and took a deep breath to quell it _did she seriously call me a sumbitch?_ He grinned and muttered "Old school" and grabbed a protein bar from behind his seat, he wasn't one who flew on an empty stomach, but he wasn't going to raid someone else's fridge either. He looked for the zoid, half expecting it to fly over the house's roof, instead he was surprised to see the micro-raptor zoid come charging around the building, it looked like a Gun Sniper that had traded its guns for feathers and wings, it wasn't without an arsenal though; Cyrus recognized the twin AZ assault rifles and the small missile box. Cyrus sat stunned for a moment with half a bar sticking out of his mouth.

The zoid raced past the Buster Eagle and leapt into the air, Cyrus gaped in surprise as the zoid transformed; relocating parts to extend its wings and repositioning its weapons "_What are you waiting for?_" Belle demanded as she circled back "_I thought we weren't dawdling_" Cyrus recovered his wits and launched his zoid, the Buster Eagle chasing after the smaller zoid.

The Tamer team's farm didn't have canyons but the mountains provided interesting obstacles for a race and Belle led Cyrus around the course twice to allow him a chance to get acquainted with it. She pointed out a low hanging structure on the first lap "_As we go past that a third time its game on. Three laps of the course and the first one past the overhang wins_" she led Cyrus around the course and he drew level with her as they approached the overhang for a third time.

They both shoved the afterburner control forwards and their zoids accelerated hard. The nimble Evo Flyer raced ahead and dove into the first corner, Cyrus apexed the turn and soared wide, bringing him back within range of the nimble 'Flyer he watched the tiny zoid spin through a gap and had to hold the 'Eagle sideways to follow her.

Cyrus wasn't fooled by Belle's statement that the Evo Flyer was slower; maybe it had a lower top speed than the Buster Eagle, but it was lighter by at least twenty tones, accelerated faster and had far more maneuverability than his bigger zoid. Belle was an excellent pilot too; she zoomed over the dense forests with the skill of someone who knew the terrain like the back of their hand. Cyrus admired her skills as he tried to keep pace, actually he admired more than just her skill, and he could fall for her, hook, line and sinker.

The realization hit Cyrus like a bolt. The terrain, Piper hitting on David, the race. The battle wasn't beginning in twenty-odd hours time, the battle had been on for three days now.

The girls must have had this all planned out.

Cyrus gritted his teeth and cursed himself as a fool.

Belle kicked his ass and Cyrus laughed and pretended to drop nervous praise on her, like he was flirting, but inside he seethed. The pair headed back to the Ranch and Cyrus thanked her for the company. _I have to keep cool_ Cyrus thought desperately and joined the team at the breakfast table. Breakfast was another huge affair and a riot of different foods was placed in front of them; amazingly enough none of it went to waste.

After the cleanup was finished Cyrus put away the drying towel and announced that it was time for the Crew team to head into town and prepare for the next day's battle "Of course we'd love to hang around and impose on your hospitality, but we only packed minimal ammunition and our zoids, well mainly my Buster Eagle, chew through it like crazy"

They hit the road where Cyrus had planned to tell his team what he had discovered, but Belle had decided to tag along in her Sinker, since refusing her would make her suspicious Cyrus had offered to pilot the Gustav and haul his zoid and their trailer. He wrote down his suspicions on three sheets of paper as the zoid rolled along the desert, then he sat back to figure out an effective counter; he considered all his suspicions.

The terrain; the battlefield was the densely wooded forest that Cyrus and Belle had flown over that morning, Cyrus suspected that the girls had chosen it specifically to make them decide against using Kat, just the way they had.

Piper hitting on David wasn't such a far stretch to imagine, but Cyrus was positive that Karin had been trying to get his attention before Belle had taken over. The town was only an hour away by Gustav, surely three beautiful class A girls would have no shortage of males to choose from.

The final clue had been during the race; even though she was ahead Belle had been testing him and the Buster Eagle against her Evo Flyer and she knew she could out-fly him.

Cyrus tapped pen against the paper and decided he'd better start by nullifying what he could. He gathered that Belle intended to hoot him down in an aerial battle while Piper put David off his game and Karin did likewise with Jhese. Jhese only had eyes for Kat so that part of the plan had already failed.

Cyrus wrote down Lightning Siax; Kat's zoid might not be able to utilize its speed but as a ground zoid it would be harder for an airborne zoid to fight with, especially under the thick forest canopy.

Next Cyrus wrote Command Wolf G2G, G2A; buying a versatile gun for David seemed like a good idea, with him able to fire on anything Belle might not be so keen to take to the air, he also wrote down smoke dischargers, they had used the Command Wolf smoke dischargers on several occasions and Cyrus had noted their particular usefulness in forests.

Finally Cyrus considered Jhese's zoid; the Storm Dragon seemed like the best choice, not simply because the only other option was the Ironmonger armour but because of its Squall blades. Cyrus grinned as his idea sprouted horns and a pointy tail.

…………………..

Cyrus turned towards the fresh fruit store as the others headed for the ammunition shop, Belle predictably stopped him "Where are you going? The ammo shop is that way"

Cyrus tossed her a grin "Yeah, but the watermelon in that shop looks way too tempting, wanna come?"

"Um…okay, what about you guys?"

Kat, David and Jhese stalled for a moment, clearly confused, Cyrus didn't skip a beat and threw the Gustav's key to Kat "The big stuff is in the Gustav, I only have small change and some credits on me, I'll meet you guys back at the ammo store in a while okay"

"No worries Dawg" Jhese said with a grin "good luck 'Oh Fearless Leader'" _good old Jhese _thought Cyrus _noisy twit doesn't even realize he's just said the perfect words_. Cyrus caught Belle's hand and took her to the fruit stall.

………………..

"Ugh" groaned Kat "what is Cyrus's deal? Does he think he's the only one who deserves some fun?" she crawled around in the Gustav hunting for the credit book that Cyrus had mentioned "Where is it? Jhese, have you found the credit book yet?" she looked up and saw David and Jhese studying a sheet of paper "ARE YOU LOOKING FOR THE CREDIT BOOK OR NOT?"

David stuffed his hand into his pocket and pulled out the credit book "Cyrus slipped it to me just after we parked; I thought he was just trying to ditch us to be with Belle until he told us that the credit book was in the Gustav, he doesn't forget stuff like that. Then I found this, it seems our leader has been doing some thinking" he gave the note to Kat.

Kat studied the note; it outlined Cyrus's suspicions and theories. Kat flipped the page over and looked at Cyrus's battle plan, shopping list and the P.S. 'I'll explain more at the hotel tonight'

………………..

Cyrus took Belle back to the ammo shop some three hours later and found his teammates waiting on boxes marked with the famous A.Z. weapons and ammunitions logo. Jhese looked up as they approached "Good movie?"

Belle looked perplexed "What movie?"

Jhese cocked an eye at Cyrus "You had her all to yourself for the last three hours and you didn't take her to see a movie…what kind of _twit_ are you?"

"I uh…" Cyrus reddened slightly.

"We ate watermelon, we went shopping, I owned his ass in a Molga race and he whined like a bitch, he took me to a juice bar and we went shopping again. Cyrus has offered to carry it all back with his Buster Eagle, so I'll be borrowing him again" Belle seemed quite happy about her time with Cyrus "I'll let him come back before dark though"

Jhese laughed "That's still four hours away, what else are you doing with him"

Kat whacked the pilot over the head "That is NONE of your business Jhese" she turned to Cyrus "we'll catch you at the motel" with that she turned and headed for the Gustav.

…………………….

The comm. buzzed and Cyrus pressed the button to answer it, Belle's face popped up on screen "_Hey Cy-god you look awful…you ate the pigs breakfast at the motel didn't you. And after I warned you not to_" Cyrus grinned; the truth was his blackened eye had come from Kat when she saw how much they had spent, and the green tinge had actually come from him stuffing two thick-shakes down his throat and doing barrel rolls in the Buster Eagle, he had no idea that looking sick could be as easy as food poisoning "_I suppose this means you won't be piloting today?_"

Cyrus hid more smiles behind a growl "_My team won't quit, you'll still get a battle_" he leaned back in the Gustav "_I might have to take a reign check on the date though_" he cut the comm. as the judge capsule crashed to the ground let the Tamers team deal with this new development in a minute.

………………….

Out of sight and somewhere in the dense trees the judge rose from his landing crater "The area within a ten mile radius of here is a designated battle zone all non-personnel must clear the area immediately. DANGER! DANGER! Area scanned battlefield set up. Battle mode 0982, the Tamers team verses the Crew team, ready…FIGHT!!!"

………………….

Jhese, Kat and David moved into the forests, treading quickly past the trees, they had overestimated the tree density, only slightly; Kat would still be unable to fully utilize the Lightning Siax's speed. When they had gone some distance into the forest Jhese set to work.

………………………

Belle soared over the battlefield her Evo Flyer skimming the treetops as she hunted for any sign of the Crew team zoids, movement drew her eyes to the right and she veered towards the area. Trees fell as something cut them down; quickly.

She circled the area and the trees stopped falling. Curiosity got the better of Belle as she circled the area again and she wondered why no zoids were visible, finally she couldn't take it and she turned in to fly over the cut down trees.

Explosions rocked the air around her tiny zoid and Belle searched frantically for a patch of clear sky, one of the shells made a direct impact with her wing, she cursed heartily as the zoid destabilized. Belle pointed the nose down and disappeared into the trees.

…………….

"_Nice shooting_" Jhese commented happily as the Evo Flyer descended into the trees "_It's not over yet though_" he pushed the Storm Dragon forwards, moving towards where the 'Flyer had gone down. He glanced back at the Lightning Siax "_Happy hunting Kat_"

The 'Siax's pilot grinned "_Stick to the plan Jhese_" and she wheeled her zoid to move away, discarding the Anti-Aircraft weapon that had been attached to her zoid's flank.

Jhese moved cautiously, Cyrus had told him that Belle's zoid could transform from a ground unit to an aerial unit and back again, so disabling the flight parts did not fully disable the zoid's effectiveness; according to Cyrus he was now facing something along the lines of a Gun Sniper or Hell Runner.

A bullet whistled past the Storm Dragon and Jhese ducked the zoid instinctively. He pointed the Squall Blades and fired with the guns they secreted, he then wheeled his zoid and accelerated, the Storm Dragon galloping into the forest. Another bullet whistled past and another, telling Jhese that she was indeed following him. He flipped a panel open on his console, he'd had to install a separate box to hold the wiring but it was a component he was used to installing, and flipped the switch.

Thick smoke poured out the smoke dischargers (the merchant at the zoids scrap-yard had laughed himself to tears and given them a discount for brightening his day when they asked if he had any busted Command Wolves lying about "I tell you, that's a good'n kiddo. Broken zoids don't do much 'cept lie about!" he had then watched in amusement as Jhese had liberated the smoke discharging systems off three of the zoids before offering the discount "I usually can't give those things away, how's half price sound?")

…………………

Belle swore loudly, cursing her luck and the thick haze that had blocked her aim on the fleeing Storm Dragon, she slowed down enough to make out the trees and avoid them, but continued tracking the bigger zoid by the scrapes that his zoid left on the trees. _Stupid desert rat, he might think he's being crafty, but no matter how careful he is his zoid is simply too big to be stealthy in this forest_. She continued after the zoid, making out the slight scrapings by staying further back in the haze.

Suddenly a cool breeze pushed the smoke aside and Belle froze, only feet from the very edge of a recently made clearing. Belle's mind raced _okay, Jhese obviously did this, the question is why? Logically the combination of smoke and trees was slowing me down, so why take out the trees?_ She grinned as her mind found the answer _Kat or David must be out here somewhere, this is a kill-zone_.

Cautiously Belle made her way around the clearing, hunting for the supposed ambushers, a complete circle revealed nothing. Angered she found Jhese's trail again and took off in rapid pursuit. Moments later she caught up with him, his zoid's silhouette was blurry, but clearly bigger than anything that her teammates were piloting and moved in to attack. Once again he blanketed her in thick smoke and fled. Belle pursued and once again pulled up just shy of a kill zone. Truly angered by this point Belle used the comm. to call her sisters. Both their faces popped up on her heads-up display "_Have you encountered David or Kat yet?_" she demanded, both girls shook their heads unhappily "_Fine_" Belle growled "_I'm sending you my co-ordinates, when you get here just follow the trail that that clumsy zoid leaves, its faint but findable_" with that she cut her sisters off and continued the hunt.

She was caught in the smoke a third time before her sisters found her. The two Hell Runners were small, but incredibly fast. What they lacked in weapons and armour they made up for with sheer maneuverability. The little zoids could outrun a Lightning Siax and turn so fast that many people swore they could dodge ranged weapons with them. Belle ordered them to fan out, enabling them to run alongside the smoke and catch up with the Storm Dragon.

……………………

Piper buzzed David's comm. once again, she knew her tactics were messing with the warrior's psyche and besides it was just plain good fun. David's weary face popped up on the screen, showing him reaching to turn the comm. off again "_Aw come on Dave don't be like that, I just want to talk_" she crooned. David hesitated and Piper knew she had him "_You wouldn't be mad at me would you?_" Piper put on her sweetest face.

David scowled "_Why would I be mad at you? You've only been chasing me and shooting at me for the last three minutes_"

"_I-WHAT?!_" Piper gasped as the trees ended and she and her two sisters shot out from under cover to find the Squall Dragon and Lightning Siax waiting for them. And worse than the Lightning Siax; the 'Dragon had been re-armed. Gone were the Squall Blades, replaced with twin Buster Canons from the Buster Eagle. Two shots hammered into the Evo Flyer; sending it crashing back into the forest where it lay prone; its combat systems frozen. Kat opened fire on Karin; putting the Hell Runner down quickly. David turned his zoid to do the same with Piper.

Piper looked at the three zoids leveling weapons at her Hell Runner and gulped "_I surrender_"

David opened the cockpit of his Command Wolf and jumped out, he walked back along his zoid, examining burns from Piper and Karin's lasers and scrapes from the trees he had brushed against in his deception "Aw, this mess is going to take weeks to repair; just look at the paint!"

Belle glared at the Crew team zoids; the Lightning Siax, Command Wolf and Storm Dragon that had defeated her team and the Gustav that had helped them do it. She stalked out of the forest and brandished her team's logo sticker "I can't believe you beat us" the canopy on the Gustav swung up and Cyrus popped his head up.

Cyrus grinned, his face still looking a mess with the black eye and only slightly faded green of his skin "Sometimes a plan made months in advance can become a disadvantage, they become obsolete" he tilted his head "We still got lucky to shoot you down so ear-" Cyrus was cut off as bombs exploded around the zoids.

"BANDITS!!!" yelled Belle "Shit, we can't fight them!"

A bomb hit Piper's Hell Runner at the feet; the legs and body of the zoid tore apart as the bomb exploded. Piper ejected as quickly as she could and flew clear, as she reached the peak of her flight she pulled the cord on her glider pack, a device that would slow the pilot's decent far faster than a parachute. It was one of the latest safety devices for zoids pilots…and it wasn't working.

David realized that Piper was in trouble when she began flailing her arms and legs; he quickly gauged the trajectory of her flight-path and bolted, sprinting to where he thought she would land. To the left of him the ground exploded and David was pelted by rocks, he didn't swerve from his path though and spun on the spot.

Piper crashed into a soft landing and looked up in surprise, she was positive that she had been hurtling towards nothing but hard bare earth, and yet her landing had been cushioned by something-that groaned. She rolled and turned to look; David let her go and flopped back "You're gonna have to pilot my Command Wolf"

Piper stared back in confusion "David. Why?"

David grinned weakly "I think I broke a rib when I caught you"

Piper stuttered "I can't just leave you here, you'll get hi-"

"MOVE DAMN IT!!!" David howled and shoved Piper towards the zoid. She stumbled and righted herself, powering towards the big wolf zoid. She leapt for the cockpit moments before another bomb hit the ground. She fell in behind the controls.

Piper powered up the zoid and whispered "We need to save your pilot" the Command Wolf howled in agreement and charged forwards to stand over its pilot. Piper finally got a look at the bandits; Pteras zoids, Piper counted six of them, _how had the judge not done anything about this?_ Piper wondered as she turned the Command Wolf's weapons on the airborne zoids _flack bullets _she noted distractedly _they were ready for us_.

Jhese fired again and again with the Buster Canons; firing them separately to cut down the time spent waiting for the massive guns to prepare for the next shot. He punched the air as a direct shot blasted a Pteras from the sky. Motion caught his eye and he turned to see the Buster Eagle take to the air.

_He is not armed with the Buster Canons. _Shads noted.

The Buster Eagle was about twenty tones lighter without the canons and it showed in the zoid's performance. Between them Jhese, Kat and Piper had shot down two zoids. Cyrus dispatched four with only missiles beak and claw.

…………………..

David lay on the hospital bed; his chest wrapped tightly in bandages, he wasn't sure how long he had been lying there but he cracked an eye when a light footstep alerted him to someone entering the room. The door was shut with little more than a muffled click and more soft footfalls told David that he was being approached by someone very light or someone not wanting him to hear their approach.

David rolled an eye and was surprised to see his first visitor was Piper "What do you want?" David demanded, inwardly he winced; he hadn't quite intended it to sound so accusing.

Piper stopped short "I didn't get a chance to say thank you after you caught me, with the bandits and all"

"Did Kat force this on you?"

"I guess I deserved that, actually Kat was against this, she's standing outside now…if she even thinks I'm not being sincere she'll come in and beat the crap out of me" Piper looked genuinely terrified of her cousin "Glue isn't her only weapon you know" Piper fell silent and David watched her with both eyes open.

After a few moments he spoke "I'm sorry…"

Piper looked at him in surprise "Sorry, for what?"

"I shouldn't have jumped to the conclusion that Kat forced you to thank me…that's just mean" he grinned "I'm not the type who gets a lot of female attention, probably my own fault, it kind of scares me and I pop out the most ridiculous things, sometimes I even believe that they're pure evil…or they want something. That's stupid of me really…aside from my friends and my zoids, I really don't have-"

Piper cut him off "You also babble quite a bit" she laughed quietly and changed the subject "so, broken rib?"

"Two actually, and one cracked, you did quite a number on me in the end"

"Hey, what are you saying? That I planned this?"

"You left it a little late if you did…no I'm saying that I was right to think that girls led to pain, and yet, I'd catch you again"

"Are you hitting on me?"

David froze, the colour drained from his face, Piper could almost see the cogs freewheeling in his head, his mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out.

…………….....

Outside Kat swore, she couldn't tell what was happening; the frosting on the window was simply too thick for her to see more than shadows. Jhese laughed "Relax, she's not gonna eat him. She's thanking him for using his ribs to break her fall…just make sure she doesn't hug him" Kat turned around to glare at Jhese; he grinned back from his seat "Stop worrying. She's your cousin, not a monster"

Kat sighed "David's just so quiet…and Piper's so…Piper"

Laughter erupted from David's room, both from Piper and David. Jhese grinned anew "I think it's safe to leave" he swung his legs off the seats and strode down the hall. Kat took a final look at the shadows and followed him.

When Kat caught up to Jhese he cast her a curious look "Cyrus said Belle seemed to be able to understand his zoid, is that something to do with the whole taming wild zoids thing?"

Kat sighed "I'm not really a great person to be answering this, but neither are my cousins I guess…

"The Reystone family has always had an affinity with zoids, and the gift usually goes along with the family name, my father didn't have the gift, but Aunt Rhonda and Uncle Charlie did, so the bloodline lives on. Anyway, supposedly, and no I can't do it, our family has the ability to communicate with any zoid, it's the reason for their success as zoid ranchers. People come to them with zoid problems and for a handsome fee the tamers will remove the zoid, so they get the fee and a wild zoid that they can tame and sell. Most buyers don't even realize that two or three months ago their 'new' zoid was a wild menace" Kat kept walking as she talked "Seems they can tame wild pilots too"

……………………….

Cyrus sold the AA weaponry back to the junk dealer for half of what he paid for them, he wasn't happy about the idea, they'd only been used once, but realistically they couldn't carry them all back. Even a Gustav had limitations. The store owner was thoroughly delighted and clapped Cyrus on the back "If there is ever any way you kids are in my neck of the woods and needing parts, just come by my shop, I'll help you out"

Cyrus stalked out into the sunlight and looked at the Gustav. Thoughts of their cheapest victory yet still racing through his head, but now he was left with a problem. Once again his team was short a member, David could take weeks to heal. And he couldn't even pilot his zoid home until that time, Cyrus sounded harsh, even in his own mind, but he had to think of his class A team.

There was only one thing for it though; Cyrus had to leave David here and find accommodation for the Command Wolf until David was fit to pilot it home. A quick stroll around the small town revealed that a garage for the 'Wolf would be costly.

A poke in the back of the head alerted Cyrus to company "Not the most observant person when you have something on your mind are you?" Cyrus turned towards the speaker "How is David?" Belle looked concerned "Piper ran out of the house this morning babbling something about 'broken a rib' I assumed she meant David, but you guys just gathered him and his zoid and racked off"

"Yeah, we had to take him to the hospital-" Cyrus began.

Belle cut him off "I had to deal with the police and the bandits"

"Your sister broke two of David's ribs and cracked a third. We kinda had to rush" Cyrus scratched the back of his head "Is it too late to help out?"

Belle was about to berate him and stopped short "You'd do that?" she looked at Cyrus hopefully.

Cyrus smiled "Sure, as long as it doesn't involve me killing someone"

Belle grabbed his arm and spoke as she dragged him along "The bandits made a statement saying we fired on them first, since it's only me and my sister's statements standing against all six of theirs it makes us seem like a family of bandits ourselves. Even though our zoids were busted. I need your statement to clear us"

Moments later they arrived at the ZBC posting that housed the closest thing to law in the desert. The officer looked up as Belle and Cyrus strode in "Bringing in an accomplice eh?"

"This is Cyrus, he leads the Crew team, the team we fought and lost to yesterday" she shoved Cyrus forwards.

"Well, that puts him in the area, what did you see?"

"Six Pteras zoids dropping bombs on my teammates and the Tamers team in an unprovoked attack. Two of the Tamer team's zoids were already out of commission; the third was destroyed in the first attack. My teammate David was already out of his zoid inspecting damage from the battle when the attack started, he caught Piper of the Tamer team when her safety device failed; suffering broken ribs for his efforts, Piper then piloted the Command Wolf and fought alongside my team. I climbed into my own zoid, a Buster Eagle, and dealt with the remaining zoids"

"Anyone else who can verify these facts?" asked the Officer.

"Three teammates who witnessed the whole thing" Cyrus replied.

"Well, I'd like to hear them; but it pretty much seems that those punks lied to me, I can't see a zoids team lying to protect the competition, please bring them by later"

………………….

For three whole days the Crew team was stranded in the area, thankfully they spent most of it at the Tamer's residence. They worked hard while they were there, but at least they found a place where they could store the Command Wolf for free. Sort of.

Kat hugged her cousins goodbye while Jhese and Cyrus stood by, shifting their feet impatiently. Done with saying goodbye to their cousin, Belle, Piper and Karin rushed over to wrap the surprised boys up in tight hugs, Belle whispered in Cyrus's ear 'Don't forget to visit when you come to collect David"

Farewells said the Crew team headed out; Jhese driving Gustav and dragging his zoid and its unused armour, Kat in the Lightning Siax and Cyrus in the Buster Eagle. Jhese settled back for a long trip that involved lots of commentary on his partner's end.

**B.A.C. Big Ass Chapter. 5,550 words of story. I considered splitting it up, but kind of thought it was fitting, being the 55th chapter and all. The countdown is on for Custom King S, until then Read, Enjoy and Review. Oh, by the way, when Custom King S starts I will be going over Custom King and editing the chapters to fix some...indescrepencies and story flaws, so for three or four weeks Custom King S updates will be fortnightly.**

**Cheers Guys**


	56. Chapter 56

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

For once Cyrus was home when Official Chase buzzed, the boy looked like hell had spat him up, but he was home "_Did you have a long night or a bad sleep?_"

The messy youth glared at him "_No sleep, go away_"

"_I have your next battle posting, are you familiar with the Tigers team?_" Cyrus nodded slowly, everyone knew the Tigers team three Zaber Fang pilots whose luck had swung like a pendulum until bringing them to rest in class A, their exploits were almost legendary, almost as legendary as their unreliability, they were either hot or cold, with no in betweens.

"_They're your next opponents; I'm sending you the details of the match now_" Cyrus mumbled a sleepy thank you and tapped the code to bring up the battle data.

Cyrus woke up several hours later; he didn't remember finding his way to bed, but he had definitely fallen asleep. He stretched and winced as his hands touched glazed tiles _crap _Cyrus pulled himself out of the bath, no doubt he had dropped in here while he had been wandering around clueless last night and simply fallen asleep.

Eggs, bacon, toast and fruit juice later Cyrus watched the battle info as he waited for Kat and Jhese to arrive. Neither team would have an advantage due to the terrain, Cyrus could already tell that much. No forests for zoids to hide from his Buster Eagle; Kat could use the maximum speed of her Lightning Siax and Jhese could do the same with his 'Dragon. However, the field also provided for the Tigers team; large boulders littered the battlefield; they would no doubt be utilized by the Tigers team as cover from his own team. Even though the area had no cliffs it did have rises that the Tigers team would probably try to use to the advantage of their long range weapons.

Predictably Jhese arrived first and flopped down on the sofa "You called 'Oh fearless leader'?" Cyrus clicked the remote and footage of a fight began playing; three yellow Zaber Fangs swarmed over a Command Wolf and Dibison before encountering stiff resistance in the shape of a Shield Liger "Well, one team's the Blitz team before Bit joined them, so I'm guessing we're facing the Tigers?"

Jhese and Cyrus had been watching the Tigers more successful matches for about a half hour when Kat let herself in and, even without the storm based wins one thing was for certain; when the Tigers were hot they were a team to be reckoned with.

Kat dropped on the lounge between Jhese and Cyrus. Cyrus had to wonder if she had done it to have both of them for company or simply as an excuse to kick them both into making room "It just doesn't feel right without David" Kat said quietly "It's funny, because he never made much noise" Kat grinned "somebody should really try making battle plans for once, they seem to work so much better than just winging it"

Jhese tilted his head "I dunno; maybe us making things up on the fly is what makes us unpredictable…" he rubbed his hands together and laid back, his eyes on the screen as the Tigers team isolated two smaller zoids from an Iron Kong and eliminated them before teaming up on the bigger zoid and peppering it into submission "Maybe a flexible plan? The Tigers seem to specialize in wrecking plans" he grabbed the remote "See, they've won a lot of battles where people attacked them in a formation, but watch when they take on the Razor-back team who have hired Jack Cisco; he leaves them in the dust and simply out-maneuvers the Tigers zoids, however, look at this upset; the Tigers vs the Lightning team; the Lightning Siax's of the Tasker sisters and Jack Cisco charge in perfect formation and the whole thing turns into a dust bowl and the Lightning team can't use their speed, I don't think the Tigers meant for it to happen, but it happens too frequently to all be coincidence"

"So…" Cyrus asked slowly "What do you propose?"

"We need a plan based around the use of individual brilliance, a random Kat, a crazy Cyrus and a nutty Jhese, my first attempt at a plan would be spread out and use hit and run attacks until we either separate one from the others or we just disappear and randomly strike the Tigers until we disable them, keeping Cyrus nearby and in the air might help to keep us from attacking at the same time, that's about all I have so far"

"Random Kat…Matt would be proud, I'm finally going to use what he taught me and utilize the Random Special upgrades to their full potential!" Kat's expression grew far-away "How do I tell him to watch the match though?"

The comm. buzzed and Cyrus grabbed the remote off Jhese, he tapped the button and a blurry image popped up, something like a skin-colored prune. The screen warped and the sounds of someone fussing about became audible "_Oh for the good old days when we used radios_" a zoid yowled in the background "_well of course this technology has been around as long as I have, longer if you must know_" a grunt accentuated this statement "_I had a ham-radio when I was a kid if you must know-yes I can still remember being a kid_"

"Matt?" Kat asked hesitantly "Matt, is that you?"

The skin coloured prune transformed into a nose on a prunish head as Matt leapt away from the camera "_No wonder I couldn't find anything wrong with it_" the little man slouched back in his chair "_So, my most gorgeous apprentice…I notice you have had someone modify your zoid components, yet you haven't used them to their capabilities, does something hold you back?_"

Kat sighed "No, nothing holds me back I just haven't had an opponent that it would be truly effective against, I want to cause an impact when I reveal it, and I wanted my teacher to see it"

"_I haven't missed a match yet, is that boy behind you that Cyrus you were telling me about?_"

Kat grinned "One of them is, the other is Jhese"

"_Ah, the mechanic, she's told me some about you too boy, I've watched your fights, stick closer to your teammates boy, they need you to cover them and be strong where they are not_" the little man seemed pleased with his sage advice. Jhese thought for a moment and recalled _Commander Hunt said something along those lines. The rest of the conversation was lost on Jhese as he puzzled over the cryptic words that both renowned warriors had imparted to him, his zoid was as fast as if not faster than Kat's zoid, he had equipped his zoid with a bladed weapon that enabled him to hit and run instead of simply grappling with the Electro Talons, he even had armour that specialized in hit and run tactics, yet another great warrior had told him to stay with his teammates._

……………………..

Jhese woke up on Cyrus's sofa, he quickly rose and charged out the door to his waiting zoid; he had work to do.

Jhese's spanners, ratchets and screwdrivers whirled as Jhese attacked his job with an eager zeal. Kat was the attacking force behind the Crew team, Cyrus offered airborne assaults, and David offered an interchangeable platform for weapons with his Command Wolf and versatility in Melee and artillery with his Hound Soldier, so what did Jhese offer? His zoid could be as fast as Kat's Lightning Siax, could have the fire power to match Cyrus's Buster Eagle and offered far more versatility than David's two zoids. He knew the answer; he had figured it out last night.

…………………….

Kirkland gritted his teeth as his zoid grabbed at the Earth with its claws; the yellow Zaber Fang finally settled on the hard ground "Damn I hate fighting Lightning Siax's" Kirkland muttered "_Hey, Lineback! Try to spread your fire more with those gattling canons; we need to knock that thing down!_"

"_I'm trying bro, she's hard to shoot at, it's like there are two of her!_" Lineback growled as he tried again "_Where'd that 'Dragon go? It's supposed to be as fast as the 'Siax_"

Kirkland tried to think the problem through, the 'Dragon had disappeared as soon as the match started and it had his team on edge, something just didn't add up "Omari, are you keeping that Buster Eagle pinned down?"

The youngest member of the Tigers team responded quickly "_I can't knock him down, but he can't get past my guns either_" the plan had been to knock down the 'Dragon, then the Eagle, then team up on the Lightning Siax, things both were and weren't working for the Tigers, the 'Dragon was gone, the Eagle was pinned down and two Zaber Fangs were locked in a stalemate with the Lightning Siax. Yet something was not right.

…………………..

Kat turned the Lightning Siax towards Omari's Zaber Fang and stepped up the acceleration, dodging the gattling fire from Lineback as her speed changed, she heard the pings as the odd bullet came close; _Jhese is a genius_ Kat marveled as her zoid hurtled forwards unscathed.

Kirkland arrived in time to intercept and braced his zoid to take the impact of the speeding 'Siax, fully confident that his zoid would be the one to come off better in such a direct collision. The leader of the Tigers team gasped in shock as five Lightning Siax zoids whipped past his Zaber Fang. Kirkland's mind reeled _impossible, I lined her up square, there's no way a 'Siax could turn so sharp! And why the hell were there FIVE of them?! _Sharp as it was Kirkland's mind only barely recognized the electric blue streak for what it was; _'Dragon!!!_

Omari watched in horror as his captain was cut down under the cloud of Lightning Siax's that were now headed for him. He turned his guns on the incoming zoid and cursed as the Buster Eagle soared overhead, then cursed again as the Lightning Siax cut an incredible ninety degree turn! No zoid could do that, least of all a Lighting Siax. Omari's brain was still only just registering the turn when the electric blue streak hit his zoid, sending it flying to crash heavily against a rock. Omari hit the console as the System Freeze warning started flashing.

Lineback squeezed the triggers for the twin gattling cannons mounted on his zoid; with both his companions down for the count he had no concerns about what he hit. He spun his zoid in a tight circle in an attempt to spread the shells as widely as possible. The multiple Lightning Siax images disappeared under the shells and Kirkland felt the warm ray of hope shine in his soul before he saw a blue glow detach itself from one of the Lightning Siax images and hurtle towards his Zaber Fang. Lineback turned both canons to the front, but the bullets seemed to his as they skidded around the smooth surface of the- _Shield!!!_

Jhese looked down at the fallen Zaber Fang "I…uh…I didn't overdo it did I?"

_He seems to have fainted_ Shads poked the Zaber Fang with his toe.

"Can he even feel that?" Jhese asked, noticing his partners move.

_I'm poking metal, what do you think?_ His zoid snorted impatiently _Meat-bag gesture that I picked up off you_.

Jhese grinned at his partner's comment "C'mon, let's get out of here…" Jhese watched the judge capsule take off with a final "_until the next battle, FAREWELL!!!_" then turned his partner and headed back to his teammates.

..................................

"How on Zi did you do that?" asked Kat "your zoid isn't as fast as my Lightning Siax, especially in Gogu armour" she stared at Jhese as she waied for an answer.

"I took the back armour plating off Shads for this match alone, in short Shads was running with only a helmet and leg guards, I had to rely on the shields"

Kat leaned forwards and kissed the mechanic "You're a nut"

**Sorry I'm a little behind in my duties once again, I'd love to blame it all on the insane amounts of work university dumps on a person, but the truth is probably closer to time manangement.**


	57. Chapter 57

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOM****KING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

"Four more wins and we make class S!" Cyrus knocked back his orange juice happily "Too bad we're not old enough for some real celebratory drinks"

"Like you could hold liquor anyway, one whiff of that stuff that Thomo drinks and you were out like a light!"

Jhese burst out laughing "Kat, Thomo doesn't drink that stuff, he uses it to power his prosthetic arm!"

Kat looked genuinely surprised "Thomo has a mechanical arm? Then why does he take the flask to his mouth?"

"He doesn't. The old weirdo just likes the smell, and he probably knows you think he drinks it. The filler is on his shoulder, just under his collar" Jhese looked around as the comm. buzzed; like everything else in Kat's house the monitor looked like it was made for a skater, it was plastered in stickers of various highly rated brands, shoes, music, zoid manufacturers and weapon-smiths.

David's face popped up as Kat clicked the remote "_Well, this is new, everyone having tea and crumpets at Kat's place_" Jhese grinned at the irony of that statement; juice, fruit, biscuits and chocolate were the order of the day at Kat's snack bar "_So, how are the triumphant Crew team?_"

"Heh, the usual ass-kickers we always are, minus one…hey, are you at my _cousin's house_?"

Piper popped up beside David "_Yeah, he has been released from hospital. We bought him over yesterday to watch your match against the Tigers team with us. You can come and pick him up if you really want to I suppose…_" Piper giggled and gave David a quick peck on the cheek.

Kat looked around to see Jhese and Cyrus pulling their jaws off the floor "Are you two serious?" she turned back to her monitor "So, you two are a couple now…David, you realize she may be the enemy again in the future?"

"_And I'll bust her ass, kiss her cheek and send her a box of chocolates with the winnings!_"

Behind her Kat heard Jhese and Cyrus break down in hysterics, while on screen Piper grabbed David's cheek and began pulling it around "I'm surrounded by clowns!" she groaned in despair "Why must you people act like half-wits?"

"_Considering who we are, how can you expect anything else?_" David asked before growing serious "_I can come back to the team now, but I'll need some escorts, I don't really want to travel alone in the desert_"

Piper spoke up "_We can take him about halfway, but we also have to get to our own match soon_" Piper bought up a map "_Here_" a red marker appeared on the map "_We will wait for you in Gamba town. Cool?_"

Cyrus caught his breath and answered "Yeah, cool. We'll meet you there" He turned to the rest of his team, alright guys, mount up, we roll out today!"

Kat smiled at David and Piper "He's acting all manly because he's the only one on the team still all alone"

"_I wouldn't be too sure of that if I were you…bye guys!!!_" Piper's face blinked out as Kat tried to piece together her parting statement.

"You sly dog" Jhese commented "You've been keeping in touch with Belle haven't you?" Cyrus smiled smugly at his teammates before heading to the door.

…………………..

It had taken a day and a half to reach Gamba town by Gustav, but the Crew team weren't limited to Gustav speeds; the Lightning Siax and Storm Dragon made the trip in eight hours. The Buster Eagle would have touched down some two hours earlier.

Kat looked around the town, confusion set in when she spotted the Buster Eagle and two of the Tamer team's zoids at the hospital. Kat and Jhese charged over to the hospital and jumped out of their zoids. They burst into the hospital to find Cyrus and Piper in the waiting room "What happened?" demanded Kat looking from her captain to her cousin and back again "Where is David? And what happened to your face?"

Piper grimly touched the bruise that wrapped around her eye and cheek "We were ambushed in the desert by four zoids. A 'Wolf with a massive sword, an Iron Drill, a Rev Raptor of some type and a Red Horn, David seemed to know them, but they took him and Karin, so we didn't find out who they were until Cyrus got here"

Cyrus held up a piece of paper "Colby and his little Barrage team as you have probably guessed…" he looked at Jhese and Kat who nodded "…have cordially invited us and the Tamers team to join the fun of Grave Wars"

Kat gasped "This is _my _fault!" Cyrus and Jhese gawked at her in shock "Colby _told me_ about Grave Wars! I threatened to beat him up if he didn't go away. David and Karin were taken because I didn't accept the invite!" she looked around as if awaiting somebody's agreement.

For a while nobody spoke; then Piper put her hand on Kat's shoulder "It isn't your fault. If any of your crewmates had been asked they would have refused, they still would have been grabbed at the same point, don't waste your breath arguing with me, what's Grave Wars?"

Cyrus piped up "An illegal fighting tournament that used to be run by the Back-draft organization on a pay per view livewire streaming, the organization went down but die-hard fans kept the competition alive with a guerilla style set up and vanish method, they tempt teams in with offers of huge prize money, setting a location told only to teams that have accepted the invites" he waved the invite for emphasis "It is an eight pilot per team competition with no rules besides destroy your opponents. Oh, and losing teams give up their zoids to the organizers"

"So why does Colby want us in so bad?" Jhese asked "I know he's still cut about the Buster Eagle, but if we lose he won't get it"

Cyrus nodded sagely "Maybe, it's true that the winnings go to the organization, but what if they sell those zoids to make the prize money that they offer?" Cyrus stretched his neck as he spoke "None of that really matters though, we don't have eight members, and even with the Tamer team we only have six, we-"

A soft cough interrupted Cyrus and he looked up to see Rhonda and Steve walking towards them with Belle between them "We can't just sit back and let you kids save our daughter, we're coming too. We've even bought reinforcements, this is Casey; he was in the Wilder Z team with me" the tall man stepped out from behind the trio and Jhese could hardly believe he hadn't noticed the six foot five warrior.

Casey tipped himself in an elegant bow, causing his long brown and grey hair to spill over his face. He grinned wildly and stated "Captain of the Wilder Z team actually, a fact that Rhonda usually ignored when the battles began" _captain of the Wilder Z team seems appropriate_ Jhese thought to himself _he reminds me of a wolf_.

Steve grinned "I may not be a great zoids pilot, but I must help. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I just stood by and let one of my daughters get rescued"

Cyrus flicked the letter to him "Well, let's get practicing eh? We have two teams who don't know one another's fighting style, three extras whose skills are a complete mystery and one invite to accept"

………………….

"Hey, it isn't every day I get to play hero you know" Steve said as the exhausted warriors gaped at his seemingly endless endurance "I live in a house filled with strong women, they never got bullied, they never lost fights, they never even cried when they scraped their knees" he lined the Hell Runner up for another practice run "I'm gonna save my daughter"

The Hell Runner took off at speed and began weaving through the slalom course; ducking between the cones in tight weaves.

The warriors watched his progress, since no other zoid on the ranch seemed willing to cooperate with him Steve was stuck with his Hell Runner, Skate. Hell Runners had notoriously weak arms and armour, they could carry next to nothing by way of extra weaponry and could get knocked over by a strong wind, what they did have was speed.

Hell Runners were the pinnacle of fast land zoids; nothing could top or even match the acceleration and pace that Hell Runners could generate. They could out-turn a Zero Jaeger and out-run a Lightning Siax.

If Steve could master his zoid's capabilities he might be able to make life very miserable for an opposing team.

Rhonda on the other hand needed no advice; in fact Jhese was asking her for tips on how to improve his piloting skills. Her Gun Sniper was nothing fancy, but she was a wizard pilot.

"Why didn't you try taking on Naomi in a duel?" Jhese asked after watching her hit target after target.

"_Who says I didn't?_" asked Rhonda

"How'd it go?" Jhese asked eagerly.

"_Until Bit Cloud came along no warrior could boast that they've gotten within a thousand yards of Naomi Flugal, how do you think it went?_"

"The range of the Gun Sniper is longer than one thousand feet" Jhese persisted "You didn't have a decent shootout?"

"_It wasn't the epic guns blazing shootout you're hoping for, mostly duck and cover trying to fake your opponent into firing a precious shot, but when you talk Gun Snipers one shot is all it takes_" Rhonda smiled lightly and downed another target "_I moved from cover to cover thinking that Naomi had taken the bait, I fell for a rushed shot and walked into the real one_"

"You don't seem too upset about losing" Jhese noted.

"_Oh, I was just one of many. Personally I found the whole experience rather humbling, and we battled for over a half hour, so it wasn't an easy match for either of us_" Rhonda downed the final target and punched a button on a remote and several more targets popped up, these ones moving and roving about the target range "_They say that the hardest thing to do with a telescopic sight is hitting a moving target_" Rhonda proceeded to knock down the targets. Her aim had to be at least as good as what Jhese had heard of Naomi's because Jhese couldn't imagine better.

Kat and Piper raced along the ground while Cyrus and Belle put their aerial skills to test after test.

Casey strolled up in his zoid about mid-afternoon. Jhese had expected some sort of 'Wolf zoid and was surprised to see a zoid that looked like a cross between a Liger Zero and an Attack Kat, it even sat somewhere between the two in size, being only slightly smaller than Kat's Lightning Siax. Casey saw him staring and called out "You like my Brave Jaguar eh? She's a pearler isn't she? Not as fast as a Lightning Siax, but she's as tough as anything you can buy today. Years ahead of it's time" Casey looked distracted for the moment then seemed to recall something "Oh right, gather up the others would you, I have some teamwork activities for us"

Jhese rushed about calling in the other warriors and then waited with Casey while they mustered together near the Ranch-house. Casey waited until all of them were present and accounted for before he spoke again "Right you lot, we can train until the sun starts pouring rain, but I for one would rather be on a great team of warriors than be on a team of great warriors, so I have some 'team' exercises lined up for us" he paused for dramatic effect "First we have some bounty hunting work; a pack of bandits have taken up residence in the town of Sandgate, just north of here. Mostly Gators and Dimetrodons, they're all led by a pilot in a Dark Spiner. The jerk calls himself 'Lord Thunder', and we have been offered a healthy sum by the townspeople to dispose of him. Remember, time is short so NO ARGUING!!! We must become a unit"

The small militia moved out.

…………………….

Sandgate town didn't have a great amount going for it, wooden fences, mudbrick buildings, some small farms and a small zoids lab that specialized in farming zoids surrounded by miles of desert. The newly formed militia moved over this desert under the cover of darkness. They camped within a stones throw of the walls, ate a fireless, cold meal and napped in their battle gear, this ranged from Piper's and Kat's revealing clothes to Casey's brown on brown desert-wear. They rose before the grey of dawn tinted the night sky and waited.

The town broke into chaos as the bandit sentries awoke to find eight battle ready zoids at their gates. The militia charged in. Jhese and Kat knocked over the gate and scattered the guards as the Hell Runners, Gun Sniper and Brave Jaguar moved in quickly to cut the bandits off from their zoids. Cyrus and Belle flew above the town disabling zoids as bandits made for their cockpits.

"_Um guys_" Belles face popped up on all the militia's heads up displays "_Has anyone else noticed that there's only Gators around here?_"

Casey popped up "_Actually there's one Dimetrodon here, my guess would be a skeleton guard that we took down and the main force off on a raid; it seems we underestimated the force we're dealing with_"

"_We being you_" Rhonda stated "_So basically we have two choices, stay here and wait until those bandits have finished whatever terrible thing they're up to, which by the way isn't an option, or two, we leave the Gators with the villagers and go find these jerks_"

Jhese's brow furrowed as he thought "_Would any of these villagers even know how to pilot a zoid in combat? We can't just leave them, what if the rest of the bandits return while we're gone?_"

Casey provided the solution to that problem "_Leave me and Rhonda behind while you guys look for these bandits, we've got the slowest zoids anyway_"

Jhese, Kat, Piper and Steve dashed through the gates as Casey roared after them "_Work in pairs and keep in touch!!!_" he then turned his attention to Cyrus and Belle "_You two take it in turns, one flies to the north and returns to circle the town while the other goes south and returns to circle, got it?_" both Cyrus and Belle gave affirmative answers before lifting off.

………………….

Minutes turned to hours and nothing turned up, the negative calls streamed over the comm. until midday; Belle popped up on Casey's H.U.D. "_I found them, they're about a hundred kilometers outside the town and closing fast, twelve Dimetrodons and a Dark Spiner, and they should arrive within the hour_"

"_Shit_" Casey cursed "_SHIT! Call back the others as fast as you can, Rhonda comm. Cyrus, I'll get Kat and Steve!_" He buzzed Kat's comm. and the girl popped up on his H.U.D. "_Get back to town asap! We have them heading this way fast!_" he disconnected Kat and got Steve "_Back to town, NOW!_"

Rhonda piloted her Gun Sniper over to the south fence and swung it around, she tagged the new system and swung into sniper mode "_Let's see you animals get into this town_" Casey pulled up beside her in the Brave Jaguar. Rhonda grinned "_Just like the old days eh, you be my broader sight, tell me when you see a dust cloud_"

"_Oh come on, it hasn't been that long since we last fought together, you're just being nostalgic_"

"_Nostalgic hell, it's been eight years since we last stood against an opponent, let alone an enemy_"

Cyrus soared overhead in his Buster Eagle; headed towards the south to team up with Belle and her Evo Flyer "_I'll keep you posted on their movements, but I'm gonna pin them down to give the others a chance to get back to town_"

"_Wait, Cyrus! Do not engage them, do NOT engage_!" Casey yelled after the pilot "_Dimetrodons are armed to the teeth with missiles, lasers and comm. killing technology_"

"_Wh-_" Cyrus began before his comm. signal died. Casey and Rhonda exchanged worried glances.

………………….

_Damn it, the comm. died_. Cyrus cursed as he flew low as his zoid could manage, the best way of finding the blue and grey Evo Flyer would be to let Belle find him. Suddenly missiles filled the air and Cyrus cursed himself, he was too low to maneuver away from the approaching rockets, he quickly pulled the cord that Jhese had installed; an inflating rubber strip puffed up as air rushed through it, covering the controls to deaden any impacts. Cyrus braced for the worst.

………………..

Belle dove quickly, fingering the Evo Flyer's triggers as the zoid dropped through the sky, the Anti Zoid shells made short work of the missiles as they connected, blowing an opening in the deadly cloud.

The Buster Eagle soared clear of the missiles and its grateful pilot saluted his saviour. Belle giggled softly, Cyrus could seem rough around the edges but sometimes she saw through his image to a gentleman inside, _I like that_ she decided.

The two zoids rose away from the incoming laser fire and hastened out of missile range. Belle veered towards Cyrus to gain his attention and pointed up. The two zoids soared high; finally they were out of jamming range "_You HALF-WIT!!! Did you even realize that Dark Spiners and Dimetrodons specialize in electronic warfare?_"

Cyrus grunted his reply "I_ didn't think they had gotten so close_" he peeled away from Belle's Evo Flyer and turned back towards the desert "_I didn't even see them_"

"_Simple painted camouflage_" Belle stated as she followed him "_Reasonably creative too, did you see the cactus that seemed to bend in the wind?_"

"_Uh what wind?_" Cyrus asked

"_Exactly, I thought you were quick of mind. That was the spines doing their jamming thing_" she realized Cyrus's course and balked "_What do you think you're doing?_"

"_Payback_" Cyrus stated shortly. He fired the Buster Canon into the cactus; blowing a hole in the back of a Dimetrodon. Belle sighed, the spined zoids made further comm. activity impossible so she fell in behind Cyrus and began strafing the bandit pack.

**First of all, if you are reading this message...thank you, honestly.**

**Secondly, sorry to those regular readers who have had to wait yet another fortnight for a chapter to be put up. I hope its length makes up for my tardiness.**


	58. Chapter 58

**ZOIDS**

**CUSTOMKING**

I DO **NOT** OWN THE RIGHTS TO ZOIDS

THIS STORY IS A **FANFIC** CREATED WITH

NO THOUGHT OF BENEFIT TO MYSELF

**ENJOY!**

Everywhere in the world there are similarities but there's always a boundary, a point where something stops being one thing and becomes another. Lakes can get enormous but there's always that point where it becomes an inland sea, when does a hole become a cave, when does a breeze become a gust, a gale and a hurricane? Jhese tried to pull his thoughts away from that direction, it was anything but positive thinking but he was becoming fairly certain that what he and his companions were dealing with was not a bandit crew but a small army.

The Gators and Dimetrodons spread across the flats like a forest of the cactus they had painted on their spines. Jhese chuckled to himself and readied a comment to his partner but Shads cut him off _Just like chopping trees._ Jhese jumped in surprise then mentally glared at his zoid for stealing his line, _Really, I didn't _Shads smirked _it's just that you told me before you said it._ Jhese sighed and thumbed a switch on the console and looked out the corner of the canopy to see the Squall Blades drop down to the sides of the Storm Dragon, the heavy blades began pulsing with energy then lit up like neon signs. Jhese turned his head and signalled to Kat who fell in behind him.

Shads picked that moment to voice a concern _Jh- the electrical field! It's sh-ing out my Go- base!_ The power that had radiated along the Squall Blades died as Shads ploughed into the Dimetrodons, still cutting, but slowly losing momentum. Kat's Lightning Saix on the other hand was doing much better. Its simpler combat system and head mounted Vulcan guns were less affected by the electrical disruption and forced the Dimetrodons back away from the pair.

Jhese twitched the controls and sent his zoid rolling behind a fallen Dimetrodon body, the zoid offered some protection from the electronic disruption and Shads' voice came back _Jhese, I'm based on a thunder type zoid, you need to disable those parts or protect them somehow._ Jhese looked at the fallen Dimetrodon in front of them and let his mind buzz with his knowledge about those zoids. The Dimetrodon is, fittingly, a Dimetrodon type Zoid, created by the Zenebas Empire.

The Dimetrodon was intended to act as a communications Zoid, possessing advanced scanning and jamming systems. However, unlike earlier communications and jamming Zoids, the Dimetrodon was armed to the teeth, possessing an arsenal similar to, and almost equal to, the Red Horn. It was the link between the Gators and Shads' original Dark Spiner body, although the combat system was primitive by comparison to the later Dark Spiner the electronic protection design had not been sufficiently improved upon for production and was identical between the two.

Jhese made his move and the Storm Dragon grasped the head of the fallen Dimetrodon, the pilot believing that he was about to finish the job, abandoned his seat. Shads stomped the ground next to him to hasten his retreat. Jhese grabbed his emergency tool kit, punched the canopy opening button and scrambled down Shads' arm and into the Dimetrodon's cockpit, he dove under the console and quickly removed the larger panels. The energy ioniser wasn't big but Jhese could only pray he had the time to install it into Shads' software.

Jhese quickly scrambled up the Storm Dragon's arm with his new treasure and wired it into Shads' computer system, Jhese reached for the console and the whole zoid went dark.

Kat growled in frustration, she was quickly running low on ammunition and patience, thankfully the Lightning Saix's double barrel vulcan guns were keeping the Dimetrodons back from her and Jhese, but both she and the bandits seemed to have realised that her supply was not inexhaustible at the same time. Six Dimetrodons were keeping her pinned down among Jhese's victims while the rest simply kept moving past them, to make matters worse Jhese and Shads had dropped and not moved for nearly three minutes, Kat new she would have to make a decision about staying with her team-mate or going back to aid in defending the village. Kat glanced back at Jhese's zoid and made her choice, she shoved forwards on the accelerators and barrelled into the Dimetrodon host. She knew her laser canons were useless and her laser claws and fangs would lack their usual punch, but they were claws and teeth nonetheless, in the bunched Dimetrodon formation her zoid was the only one able to deal attacks without reservation and she punched a hole in the bandit zoids. Dimetrodon were known for their poor close quarter battle skills, but even they had mouths and teeth, eventually from amongst their numbers individuals began to latch on to slow her zoid down. Kat screamed in frustration as her zoid came to a complete halt. The Dimetrodons latched onto her zoid's limbs were simply too heavy to move, Kat thumped the console.

Jhese called for his partner in concern "Shads?" the zoid didn't reply. Jhese thumbed his comm. switch, nothing, he triggered the guns, shifted the controls and pushed the accelerators until an irritated voice yelled at him _WILL YOU STOP THAT! This is taking enough power commitment as it is without you adding more commands into the list. Hold still and BE PATIENT! _Thoroughly chastised Jhese sat back until all systems came back online. _Ladies and Gentlemen thank you for choosing to fly Shads Airways, please keep your hands and feet inside the canopy at all times until the ride has come to a complete stop._

Before Jhese could get his harness on Shads leapt into the air and fired his boosters, the zoid climbed quickly and Jhese locked the harness in place, he looked out the canopy over the line of sails and spotted Kat's zoid at the same time as Shads. The Storm Dragon reversed the Squall blades to create thin wings, then twisted in the air, pointing itself at the pinned Lightning Saix. Jhese gripped the controls as the pair rocketed down to their team-mate. _Jhese, she's got no communications we're blocked by the Dimetrodons_, _how do we get her to hold still?_ Jhese considered his partner's question "We don't" Jhese thumbed the console twice and pulled up on the controls, the blades swung forwards until their points pushed out in front of Shads' head like jousting lances with blades facing outwards, the thrusters died and Shads dropped from the sky. Jhese ignited the thrusters again and the Storm Dragon hit the ground running. Dimetrodons crumpled as the lances ripped through their armoured hides.

As the pair closed with the group holding Kat's Lightning Saix down Jhese pulled Shads from the right to the left and carved three Dimetrodons from the zoid's side. Kat immediately thrashed with the controls and sent another Dimetrodon flying with a kick. Jhese pulled the controls, whipping Shads into a 180 degree spin then squeezed the triggers and blasted the remaining two Dimetrodons clear of the Lightning Saix. Jhese grinned "Who's bad?" Shads replied smugly _I am._

…_..._

Steve Friar wasn't much of a zoids pilot, nor was he much of a warrior. Sure he'd watched his wife's and daughter's battles with pride, but he'd never taken much notice of the strategies used, nor tried to apply them to his own Hell Runner Skater, the two of them rocketed along the line of Dimetrodon just outside the effects of the communication jamming effects but also annoyingly outside the range of his zoid's missiles. Though he wasn't sure of their usefulness against larger zoids like the Dimetrodons. Piper rocketed alongside in her own Hell Runner not even bothering to aim her missiles, a point that made Steve think that the missiles wouldn't do much at all.

Piper knew their missiles wouldn't help in the slightest, if her and her father shot all of them at one Dimetrodon they'd manage to take it down, but they weren't dealing with a single zoid, they were dealing with at least fifty, a long line steadily plodding towards Sandgate town. The best they could do would be to find Jhese and Kat and provide cover fire that would enable the two to focus entirely on attacking the enemy. Piper scanned the line as the two raced along until finally she spotted them.

Kat was at an all time low, she was sick of having a drawn out battle to claw and bite the enemy, she was out of ammunition, out of patience and slowly running out of steam. Her zoid needed recharging and so did she. But despite all of it she couldn't leave Jhese to fend for himself, it would take a good ten minutes for her to get back.

As Kat swung away from the line, ready to charge back in when two welcome shapes raced towards her, she veered and moved out to meet them in a comm. available area. "_Uncle Steve! Piper! I'm low on everything, could I get you to mind Jhese while I recharge?_"

Piper popped up on her screen "_Negative Cuz. I just received orders from Mum to call everyone in. We're hunting for Cyrus and Belle next_" with that the two Hell Runners departed in a cloud of dust. Kat dove back to the line to retrieve Jhese.

…...

Belle and Cyrus were already headed back to Sandgate town when they spotted the two Hell Runners beneath them, both spilled air and dropped towards the racing pair. Piper called to them as they dropped out of the comm. jamming range of the Dimetrodons "_We're all heading back to Sandgate, Jhese and Kat will be along soon!_" Belle and Cyrus both called affirmative and continued towards the desert town.

…...

Rhonda Friar was impressed, judging through her Gun Sniper's sight she guessed that the returning six zoids had taken down about twenty Dimetrodons between them. Rhonda pressed the switch behind her head and was rotated back to a standard forward-facing position in her Gun Sniper's cockpit. She moved the zoid forwards to open the gate and let the returning warriors in and was surprised by the lack of damage on the two flying zoids and Hell Runners, then she watched Kat and Jhese storm in and realised who'd been in the midst of the heaviest fighting "_Ha! Looks like your niece inherited your fighting style Rhoda!_" Casey crowed from his Brave Jaguar, Rhonda flipped the switch to bring his face up and scowled at him "_Nah, wild attacks like that were more your style Casey_" a grizzly voice announced "_If memory serves we ended up using you as bait in a couple of rounds because you'd have gone charging in to enemy areas and gotten trounced anyway_" the zoid that ambled in to match the voice wasn't big at all, smaller than a Command Wolf, but the zoid was solid, well armoured and bristling with guns.

Rhonda saw Jhese eyeing the zoid in interest and recalled the boy's passion for zoid mechanics "_NBZ-02 Hardbear_" she stated "_A limited production type like Casey's Brave Jaguar, which means-_" Rhonda was cut short by an avian scream from a blue and white zoid as it passed overhead "_Jhese, meet Vent and Marline, the final members of the Wilder Z team_" the avian zoid dropped into the town and landed near Belle's Evo Flyer "_NBZ-03_ _Hurricane Hawk, for some reason three ground zoids and a flying zoid has always seemed like a balanced team, worked too. We were heavy hitters in Class A, if I didn't know any better I'd say Casey is trying to get the team back together_"

Casey watched over the townspeople as they familiarised themselves with the Gators, he had parked the zoids close together so that he could jump from snout to snout to explain and point out weapons systems to the pilots who had never dealt with an actual enemy before, frankly he was surprised nobody had contacted the Zoids Battle Commission about a bandit hoard of this size.

Kat and Jhese walked out onto the sand and stood quietly watching the approaching Dimetrodons, Belle's last count had called the remains of the hoard at thirty eight zoids from a group of sixty, not including the Gators, frankly Jhese found it hard to believe that there had ever been that many Dimetrodon units produced to begin with. Casey in the Brave Jaguar, Steve and Piper Friar in their Hell Runners, Vent in his Hardbear and Rhonda in her Gun Sniper soon joined them and the seven zoids stood shoulder to shoulder waiting for the zoids to come within range.

On the end of the line of defenders Rhonda spun her zoid around and began preparing its sniper mode, the Hardbear and Brave Jaguar moved to stand either side of the zoid as sentries, the Lightning Saix, Storm Dragon and two Hell Runners braced, ready to charge into the fray while the Evo Flyer, Buster Eagle and Hurricane Hawk soared above, Rhonda measured the distance with her scope "_Three...two...one_" Rhonda began firing into the middle of the hoard, picking off zoids as fast as she could, the faster zoids raced out towards the back of the convoy, where they would try to cut down the zoids before they even came within Rhonda's firing range.


	59. Chapter 59

**ZOIDS**

_THE CUSTOM KING_

I do** NOT** own Zoids.

This fan-fiction is created for the sole fact

that I am an attention seeker.

Desert towns take great pride in their ability to show gratitude to their heroes, but they were at a temporary loss when their heroes dropped out of the cockpits and dragged themselves off to the inn where they promptly fell asleep. Not wanting to ever be seen as ungracious the townspeople left a small boy with the warriors while they went to prepare a celebratory feast for them.

…...

Rango peaked around the door as he entered the room, then stopped and gawked in surprise. These people couldn't possibly be human, no human could sleep in such strange ways and be comfortable. Three were crashed out on the floor, two had flopped into awkward positions on the couches, one was draped backwards over a coffee table, the others seemed to be curled up in various nooks and not one of them had made it to the beds like a proper human.

Rango screamed and fled.

…...

Cyrus sat up several hours later and gazed with bemusement about the inn's foyer. Next to him Belle lay curled around a chair. Cyrus vaguely remembered offering it to her before he collapsed himself, she either fell off it in her sleep or missed it entirely. Steve, Rhonda and Piper were curled up together halfway up the stairs, the newcomers Vent and Marlene lay at awkward angles on the couch - Marlene laying upside down with her legs curled over the headrest and Vent not laying on the couch so much as beside it with an arm and a leg hanging where he had probably fallen asleep. Jhese was draped backwards over the coffee table in a position which couldn't be doing his spine any favours, Kat curled around the base of the table like a cat. Cyrus scanned the room for Casey until a clatter in the inn's communal kitchen caught his attention and Casey stumbled out, a bruise on his face bore a striking resemblance to an old-fashioned coffee grinder's handle and gear.

Casey noticed Cyrus staring and lifted an eyebrow before casting about the room, his eyes stopped at a silver platter and he staggered over to pick it up. In it's polished reflection Casey stared at himself for several moments before yelling in anguish and crashing back into the communal kitchen.

Cyrus used the chair to pull himself up and staggered after Casey. He found the man with the freezer door open and a bag of someone's frozen vegetables pressed against the bruise, he grimaced as Cyrus moved past but didn't move. Cyrus picked up the coffee grinder and sniffed before he began pouring in large quantities of beans in and putting the grinder to its proper use. The smell of fresh coffee soon wafted through the inn and began rousing the rest of the company, drawn like a moth to the flame Kat staggered in first with a positively neolithic hairstyle, Cyrus decided the only thing it lacked was a bone, the concept of self preservation helped him keep such a thought to himself. Kat grunted what Cyrus knew as a pre coffee good morning and flopped down at the bar beside Casey, offering little more than a raised eyebrow at his imprinted face.

Steve and Belle took the last two seats until Steve surrendered his to Rhonda. Marlene and Vent entered the room and Vent immediately shoved Casey off the seat which he then offered to Marlene. That just left two people unaccounted for – Piper and Jhese.

…...

The smell of coffee had woken Jhese just like everyone else, he loved the smell of coffee – just wasn't overly keen on the taste. _Yeah it's a grown up taste_ smirked Shads "Shuddup or I'll put metal filings in your oil" Jhese shot back as he ran the system check through Shads' console CPU _You wouldn't _DARE! Shads feigned horror _I'd crash and burn with you in the cockpit!_ "Hmm? Oh, I've been meaning to tell you I brought a new zoid with the money I got from selling your worthless hide...one that doesn't back-chat" _Pfft, you couldn't live without my back-chat, that's the only reason you win these fights – because I mouth off at the other zoids until they get psyched out, that and I do more than half the fighting Mr Pilot. When democracy fails smack-talk prevails! ANARCHY!ANARCHY! ANARCHY!_ "...You done yet?" _One more for the road...LOSER!_ "Jerk".

"You always talk to yourself?"

Jhese jumped and yelped as his head cracked on the half opened canopy _Score!_ Laughed Shads, _make that a half closed canopy _Jhese mentally corrected. He leaned over Shads' cheek and spotted Piper looking up at him "Crazy much?" Jhese grinned and shot back "There was no better company about!" _HEY! _"HEY!" Shads and Piper yelled in unison. Piper stuck her hands on her hips "I'm gonna let you get away with that because you couldn't possibly have seen me come in, but if you ever doubt my company again I will turn your zoid against you!" Jhese gawked "You can do that?" _She dances topless on my console and I'd consider it..._Shads offered. Jhese elbowed the seat.

Piper jumped up on the Gogu Dragon's foot and began climbing up to the cockpit where Jhese waited, he offered her a hand as she reached the cheek and stepped out onto the other side to let her into the single seat "My family have some kind of low level psychic connection that gives us a deeper connection with zoids than most people can ever comprehend, most people understand their zoid like a good mechanic understands their favourite car, we understand them more like an animal...like a pet dog would be the closest I can come to an explanation" _Hey, I'll wear a leash if you're planning on taking me for a walk!_ Piper's face drained of colour "It...it SPOKE!" _Yeah, IT tends to do that_ _when people try to refer to IT as a dog. Name's Shads girly, short for Shadowsaur and the last words in charm. By the way, it is a he and you can call him any time._

Piper slumped back in the seat "He's amazing...must be just like Bit Cloud's Liger Zero" _I take offence to that. I am FAR better looking than that white pussy._

"You do realise you're hitting on David's apple right" Jhese dead panned.

_She's way out of David's league_ Shads retorted.

Piper giggled "Sorry pal but I like my guys shy and nice, you're too arrogant for me"

_Awww booo! Kat's way more fun than you, she loves my arrogance._

Jhese choked "What! Kat knows you speak?"

_About three months now, took me a while to convince her that you hadn't recorded some kind of prank-_

"Why did you never tell me this?"

_It doesn't hurt to get washed twice a d-_

"That Kat knows you can talk!" Jhese roared cutting Shads off.

_It was more fun to have you thinking that Kat thought you were slightly demented...Kat and I decided it made you more grateful to believe she put up with a Loony Tune like you._

Jhese ground his teeth while Piper bombarded Shads with questions, the Gogu Dragon lapped up the new attention, he pondered the significance of Kat not thinking he was insane, three months meant that Kat had started going out with him before finding out about Shads, not by much though...why hadn't she told him she knew though, something like that generally warranted a conversation -

"Oy!" Jhese looked down as Cyrus and Kat came out together, Cyrus yelled "You're missing breakfast, come socialise with real people instead of playing make believe with your 'talking zoid'!"

Jhese flipped the bird at him from Shads' cheek before Piper's head popped up beside his "I am not make believe you simpleton!"

Jhese sat down on his haunches "Apparently Piper can communicate with zoids like she can with pet dogs, hey Kat, you got the family talent?"

Kat raised an eyebrow "I know your zoid smells like a dog, runs like a dog and gets whipped like a dog"

_HEY! _Shads complained.

"Piper, you better not be making the moves on my boy toy and his mechanical dog" Kat grinned with evil intent. _Again with the dog!_ Shads groaned _Jhese, make her stop!_ "Aren't you supposed to be preparing to rescue David? We girls have to do everything for these _males_ especially hold their hands when they choose rubbish zoids" _Jhese! She's doing this on purpose!_

"All right, all right. Kat, you know how sensitive my big blue baby is. I was installing the electrical protection system properly rather than the three minute job I pulled in the desert-"

"Yeah, hate those three minute jobs" Kat interrupted.

"-Tidy wiring and all that safety programming to make sure it continues working properly" Jhese finished raising an eyebrow at Kat "Piper decided to help out with the family secret zoid whispering".

…...

Rango wasn't keen on meeting the freaks again, but the sharp pain in his spanked backside compelled him onwards to the inn, voices told him they were no longer asleep _good_ Rango breathed, while they were awake they seemed at least a bit more normal, he walked past the gigantic metal beasts known as zoids until he found a group of them slinging insults at each other. All four of them looked down at him as he coughed politely "Uhh...th...there's a feast waiting for you guys...a...at the theatre" Rango shuffled his feet and stared at the ground "I was sent to fetch you"

Kat patted his head "You did a wonderful job, now you'd better run along and tell everyone we're on our way"

Rango turned and fled.

…...

Cactus is an interesting plant, it is the first image that springs to many minds when mentally constructing a desert landscape, they commonly live in some of the driest areas on the planet and yet are among the largest members of the succulent plant species, the outside is generally dry and leathery, often carrying large thorns. But inside they are often brimming with sugar and water, sap sweet enough to put ice cream to shame or as bitter as a lemon or could even be used to soothe burns or prevent the sun from causing them. Skills handed down from the first of Earth's colonists had given a legacy to the residents of this particular desert town, they made a particularly pungent alcohol from specific cacti that they grew in the surrounding lands. The result was branded Zicactila and Steve Friar's eyes lit up when he spotted the distinctive label on one of the bottles.

"I'm so gonna get me drunk tonight" he murmured in his wife's ear. Rhonda rolled her eyes, Steve wasn't a violent drunk, nor was he a particularly elegant drunk, but somewhere between tipsy and wasted he became an excellent dancer, and she'd put up with his hangover for several minutes of a dance partner equal to her own abilities.

Jhese sat wedged into one of the columns sipping at his cactus juice, the thing was so sugary it made his head spin, he watched the elegant desert folk twirl through their celebratory dances and self consciously scanned the courtyard for Kat, Jhese was a horrendous dancer and they both knew it, but he had to at least try before some desert rat Romeo decided to sweep her off her feet and onto the dance floor. Finally Jhese spotted Kat sitting rather delicately at a table as several guys tried to talk her into joining her on the dance floor, without a word Jhese dropped from his perch and moved over to Kat, politely pushing his way inside the circle of admirers "Ahhh...care to dance with me?"

At the sound of Jhese's voice Kat looked up in surprise "You don't dance!".

"Care to have another shot at trying to teach me?"

Kat grinned "You're a sucker for punishment. Sorry fellas but duty calls, my boy is trying to be a gentleman, can't be passing that up" the group of Romeos watched with amusement as Kat led Jhese to the dance floor "you're lucky, this is a slow tune...no close stepping" Kat twirled and Jhese followed, tripping slightly on his own feet as he tried to stay face to face with her, just as he was going to fall a strong hand caught the collar of his shirt and his descent became a dangle

"Belle, you mind dancing with Kat for a bit, I think I need to do my duty as leader of these two"

Belle chuckled "Stealing her dance partner is your duty as leader?"

Cyrus grinned "Saving her feet, be back soon" Cyrus dragged Jhese off the dance floor "Okay, I had no idea you were so horrible at this, you don't clod hop like an idiot, dancing is like driving, if you stomp the car goes nuts, you gotta squeeze the pedals right"

Jhese looked at his leader sceptically "Like driving?"

Cyrus took Jhese's hands and put one on his hip, placing his own over Jhese's shoulder "Blush and I will kill you" Cyrus dead panned "Now...squeeze the clutch" Jhese stepped to the left "Squeeze, don't stomp idiot. Clutch" Cyrus slid his foot to the left before carefully placing it down, Jhese copied "Better, now clutch, clutch, brake, accelerator, brake, clutch" The two began moving in time to the music and Cyrus nodded "Same concept for faster music, now lets go surprise your dance partner" The two returned to the dance floor, passing several of the youths who had been trying to get a dance with Kat, they had clearly seen Jhese's earlier attempts at dancing and sniggered as he passed. Butterflies instantly sprung up in Jhese's stomach and his muscles tensed like a rabbit readying itself to flee. The boys found Kat and Belle shuffling and clapping in time to the music and Jhese's butterflies intensified. _How could he treat Kat like a car? Kat was a person who adored him, not some machine..._ "All right mechanic, just like you're tuning Kat's Mustang, treat with care".

Jhese held out his hand and Kat raised an eyebrow before taking it and Jhese swung her onto the floor, the beat swelled to a faster song and Jhese resisted the urge to try and gallop in keeping up with Kat, as the song reached it's fastest tempo Jhese worried that he'd wear his shoes out before reaching the end, but remembered that he hadn't stepped on Kat's feet once and gained courage, this was a race track and smoother was always better, faster and prettier. Kat's eyes glowed with surprise and delight, Jhese responded by pulling her into a tight twirl before sweeping off again.

…...

Piper lay back on Shads' canopy "Who'd have thought that Cyrus could bring such moves out of Jhese?" Shads chuckled _Believe it or not my smooth daddy personality comes from Jhese, I'm everything he wishes he was, kinda feels depressing now that he's strutting the way I would in his place...what's that make me? Unused personality traits? _Piper pondered that for a minute "Your personality is very different from Jhese's, almost like a mirror, however, both of you have traits in common, you've always been loud and crass, but believe it or not Kat has told me Jhese can be every bit as bad as you while you're doing it...I'd consider you two halves of the same soul. Soul morons" _Bitch. _"Okay, I just thought the term soul mates might dent your ego. But honestly all people are just made up of personality traits they admire in others and subconsciously try to replicate, it's just the way they're mixed that makes us unique..."

_...Piper?_

"What's up?"

_You think too much._

The two chuckled quietly together as the feast continued.


	60. Chapter 60

ZOIDS

_THE CUSTOM  KING_

CHAPTER 60

This Fan-fic was created because I'm an attention seeker.

I own nothing.

On Earth, Jhese had once read, they used a machine called a Tractor for ploughing fields in preparation for planting crops, they also used them for harvesting the crops and other odd jobs around the farm, a powerful machine but simplistic in design. On Zi farmers had taken to using modified zoids, some zoid shapes were perfectly designed for certain jobs, others could be modified to suit the purpose at hand, Jhese had always enjoyed examining the practical modifications that farmers had made, a Pteras converted to a crop duster, the fearsome blades of a Rev Raptor used to fell trees or the awesome power of an Iron Kong used to erect barns, there were infinite possibilities with only the tiniest changes. Farmers always needed a good new hauling unit and while small the Gators seemed to provide an ideal platform. Jhese and Riccard argued into the night as they decided on how to go about modifying the Gators for the jobs, Jhese argued the benefits in light of recent events towards keeping the laser cannons as they were under the sail. Riccard however wanted the cannons removed completely and replaced by a lance-like tool that was apparently perfect for digging trenches from the nearest river to the crops in an aqueduct method. Still they had twenty five Gators and a mountain of spare parts, Riccard relented and ten Gators remained battle ready.

…...

Jhese looked over the six damaged Dimetrodons that had been dragged in from the desert, there was probably one good zoid between the carcases and he'd probably be handing that over to Casey and his Wilder Z team mates. Casey whistled as Kat overstated Jhese's mechanical abilities, Jhese studied the zoids trying to find some sort of controlling receiver but the unmanned zoids while clearly controlled by bots seemed to lack any kind of communications system to link them to a base. Jhese just hoped Cyrus and the other fliers could find something to lead them back to 'Lord Thunder'.

…...

Cyrus, Belle and Marlene spread out across the sky as they searched, staying just within sight of each other, Cyrus in the biggest zoid flew in the middle while the two smaller zoids spread the coverage to either side. Sand was one of the worst things to track something across, second only to rock. Sand held wonderful footprints, but the slightest breeze was enough to erase them completely, so the three had followed their trail of destruction left over from their battle with the Gators and Dimetrodons. Cyrus leaned forwards on the controls and the Buster Eagle stooped towards the ground, he wheeled the zoid around and returned for another look. _There!_ A pair of footprints that had to have come from a low-slung zoid like a Dimetrodon. Cyrus barrel rolled his 'Eagle as he rose back to the air, the signal that the other two should close in with him for a direction change. Their change took them towards a canyon, clearly big enough for zoids to troop through, but Belle flying low in the Evo Flyer announced several sets of Dimetrodon footprints leading around the canyon rather than through it, Cyrus admired the handy-work, these guys weren't half bad they covered their tracks reasonably well, they passed areas that looked perfect for a base, they even passed through a stream and travelled upstream for a mile. After several wrong turns and a few trips up the wrong trail Cyrus, Marlene and Belle found Kat, the Lightning Saix waited atop a ridge and Cyrus imagined a look of smugness on Kat's face, even through her zoid's canopy.

Kat dropped from her zoid's head and sauntered over to the three fliers, she waved a sheet of paper as she walked. Cyrus dropped from his own zoid as did Belle and Marlene, all curious as to what had been discovered as soon as they were within talking distance Kat announced "We found them, Casey wants us all back at base so we can attack together"

"How'd we find them?" Marlene enquired "Jhese said the communication to the zoids had been dropped just before we won, no co-ordinates to back trace, no signal to follow, just basic fighting manoeuvres."

"Jhese didn't find the solution" Kat explained "this kid from town named Rango was using a computer in one of the Dimetrodons to hack into the Zoids Battle Commission satellites, apparently to watch wild zoids, Jhese said he could find zoids by tracking their core's power signature, Jhese asked if the ZBC recorded this footage and backtracked the bandits back to their HQ. Pretty clever for a desert rat."

Cyrus snorted "You're easily impressed. You used to say the same thing about Jhese."

Kat planted a hand on her hip "Only difference is that now I say it TO Jhese. C'mon, lets head back to base." Kat spun and jogged back to her zoid.

…...

Jhese watched with interest as Rango nosed his way around the Dimetrodon's hydraulics, the little desert rat had a knack for mechanics and electronics that made Jhese feel rather envious, a triumphant yell came from inside the panel and a hand shot out, groping about for a few moments before deciding on a soldering iron and disappearing back into the zoids leg Jhese grinned "Why didn't you just ask for the soldering iron?"

"I didn't know what it was called" came the reply, again Jhese was surprised by the kid's lack of knowledge. He was running on instinct alone and a sense of what was and what should be, a quick explanation or a look at a properly working example was all the kid usually needed to find problems, his eye for details was beyond impressive "Uhhh Jhese, I got a problem down here."

"What is it?" Jhese called.

"I'm stuck, the hydraulic arm I slid down is too slick to climb back up, I need a hand!"

Jhese laughed and reached down until Rango clamped onto his wrist, then he hauled the kid up "So, what did you do down there?"

Part of the lower hydraulic arm had been burned away by a laser shot, thankfully the slag was pretty puffy so I melted it and used it and a bit of the armour to repair the hole, it was about the size of a thimble. Any bigger and I'd have been down there all day."

"The hell you would kiddo, if Jhese let you do that Hero or not I'd have tied a rope around his neck and sent him down to get you!"

Jhese grinned at Rango's father Hamish "You sure I can't adopt him? That kid has an amazing head for mechanics"

"I'd rather he get an education...but he has holidays in a months time, I'm sure he'd be delighted to be able to visit a battling zoids team" Hamish chuckled "if he hasn't moved on to a new interest by then. You know how kids are, you being one and all."

"That wasn't half blunt" Jhese replied "I turn sixteen soon."

A roar at the front of the village made Jhese, Hamish and Rango turn in that direction as the big wooden gate blew apart for the second time in under a week and a Dark Spiner kicked it's way through. Jhese and Rango split off in different directions, leaving Rango's father wondering who to follow.

Jhese took a running leap and scrambled up the side of Shads' leg before swinging himself into the cockpit and sliding the canopy forwards "That's still a classy canopy" Shads snorted _You're just saying that to cover for nerves._ Jhese smiled "Okay partner, let's rock and roll!" the Gogu Dragon's console lit up and Jhese pushed the controls forwards making the zoid advance on the gate, as Jhese arrived on the scene the Storm systems kicked in and engaged the Squall Blades energy slid down the edge creating a cutting surface. Shads hit the brakes and slid to a halt "What th-" Jhese began _Hostages _Shads informed him _two more Dark Spiners entered while you were getting me they've taken a group that tried to get to the Gators and are holding them at gunpoint. We need to be a bit more delicate than normal._ A lone Spiner stalked slowly towards Shads and the comm. beeped signalling the pilot's desire to talk, Jhese thumbed the requesting channel and found himself looking at a green mask cut in diagonals by way of a lightning bolt through each eye "Lord Thunder I assume?"

The mask tilted to the side "_You would be wise to lose your flippant tone when you address me _boy"

_I'll show him flippant when I chuck that poor Dark Spiner on its head _Shads growled _c'mon Jhese, we can take him now._ "Hostages" Jhese reminded quietly before returning his attention to the bandit "How else should I address someone who bullies farmers using war machines and takes hostages? Hero? Champion?"

"_We'll start with respectfully or I'll have one of my boys blow one of these filthy dirt scrapers into ashes._ _You know what? Just to show I'm a man of my word, Bolt!_" one of the two Dark Spiners by the hostages inclined its head slightly "_Kill one of em to prove we mean business._"

The Dark Spiner turned back to the crowd cowering against the Gators, shifting as its pilot tried to decide on a target.

_**BOOM!**_

The Dark Spiner dropped as the shot tore through its neck.

_**BOOM!**_

The second Dark Spiner fell in a similar fashion. Jhese couldn't see Lord Thunder's face underneath the mask, but he bet he'd have enjoyed it.

_**BOOM!**_

The shell tore into the ground that the lead Dark Spiner had vacated only seconds ago causing dust to plume through the village. Jhese didn't stop to watch, he leaned forwards on the controls and urged Shads into a charge. The Storm Dragon bounded over the wreaked gate and out onto the open turf where he discovered the Dark Spiner sprawled in the dirt, its ankles cranked at awkward angles and one still glowed red hot. Shads locked his talons into the sail and bent the structure over before Jhese gained control and put Shads claws onto the Dark Spiner's neck, he nudged the controls forwards and the Storm Dragon leaned over, popping the canopy like a ripe fruit. "Well Mr. Lord Thunder, looks like this game's over for you."

Cyrus, Belle and Marlene landed at the trampled gate behind Jhese. Cyrus grinned when he saw little Rango hauling a vibro-saw back into the shadows of a little garden shed. He'd have to drop in on the little ankle biter, or cutter in this case.


End file.
